Cyndi Lauper was "saved" by art.
The 'Girls Just Want To Have Fun' hitmaker has revealed she was once told by her teachers that she would either be a famous artist or dead.
Speaking at Russell Simmons' annual Rush HeARTS education luncheon, she said: "I thank you, Russell, for honouring me and the True Colors fund. I've been a big fan ever since you came on the scene ... I get very impressed and inspired by what you guys are doing.
"I, myself, was challenged a lot in high school. I was actually voted most likely to fail. I failed a bunch, too, but art saved me, and teachers, a few real brave teachers who saw this pathway and said, 'Well, either you're going to be a famous Greenwich Village artist or dead', and I thought, 'Well, I should do the art.'"
Meanwhile, the 62-year-old singer has set her sights on releasing a country album.
She told BANG Showbiz: "I don't know if you listen to country music but I want to work with Seymour Stein - he was the co-founder of Sire Records - and I've always wanted to work with him. So I figure while I've still got teeth in my mouth let me go work with him!
"I want to record all those songs I used to sing my guts out in my apartment to!"
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