Cher has always been a larger-than-life figure, a multi-hyphenate icon with a career and love life that have captured public attention for decades. In her newly released memoir, Cher: The Memoir, Part One, the 78-year-old singer, actress, and entrepreneur takes readers on an intimate journey through her personal history, including her second marriage to the late rock musician Gregg Allman.
Though her first marriage to Sonny Bono was filled with public ups and downs, Cher’s second union with Allman was marked by uncertainty and rapid decisions. Cher divorced Sonny in June 1975, a process that had been “so convoluted” that the singer felt a sense of relief when it was finally over. But her relationship with Allman, the legendary lead singer of the Allman Brothers Band, was far from certain.
“I didn’t know whether my relationship with Gregory would last or not. I was living each day as it came,” Cher candidly admits in the memoir. At the time, she had already started dating Allman, but the future was unclear. However, a life-altering revelation would soon shape their path: Cher found out she was pregnant.
Faced with this new reality, Cher and Allman made a spontaneous decision to marry. Cher’s memoir reveals how quickly the couple arranged their wedding. “Then I found out I was pregnant, and we decided to get married,” she writes. While the decision to marry was made quickly, Cher’s emotions were mixed. She was determined to be married if she was going to have a child, but she had no illusions about the relationship. Her sister and friend were taken aback by her swift choice. “Come on, let’s just do this,” Cher urged, brushing off any hesitations from her loved ones as they prepared to head to Las Vegas.
Though her decision was driven by a desire to do what she felt was “the right thing,” Cher was not entirely sure what the future held. “The future is never written in stone,” she reflects. “I just kept putting one foot in front of the other.”
Despite her reservations, Cher committed to the marriage with Allman, choosing to make the most of the present, even if the long-term future was unclear.
Cher has never been one to shy away from telling the truth about her personal life, and her marriage to Allman was no exception. In her memoir, she admits that the wedding ceremony itself was far from magical. It was brief, impersonal, and far from the romance that one might expect from a couple in love. “There was nothing romantic about our wedding day,” she writes. The small bridal party, which included close friends and family, flew back to California immediately after the ceremony, marking the end of a quick Vegas wedding.
This impulsive marriage, which took place just days after her divorce from Sonny Bono was finalized, was filled with uncertainty. Only nine days after the wedding, Cher filed to dissolve the marriage. However, the couple reconciled and, in 1976, welcomed their son, Elijah Blue Allman, into the world. Despite the early bumps in the road, Cher and Allman remained together until 1979, when they eventually divorced for good.
Cher’s reflections on her second marriage to Allman are both candid and compassionate. The couple, despite their struggles, shared some unforgettable moments together. Cher writes about their time together with both fondness and realism. “Gregg and I were both so broken in some ways,” she writes, hinting at the personal demons they both battled throughout their relationship. Allman tragically passed away in 2017 at the age of 69 after battling complications from liver cancer, and Cher acknowledges the deep impact his death had on her.
In addition to her memories of Allman, Cher also opens up about other iconic moments in her life, from her brief romance with Gene Simmons to her first meeting with Dolly Parton. The memoir promises to give fans a closer look at the woman behind the legend, with Part Two of the memoir expected to be released in 2025.
Despite the complexity of her past relationships, Cher’s candid reflections on her marriage to Gregg Allman offer a rare and honest glimpse into her emotional journey. In a world where celebrities are often seen as untouchable, Cher remains one of the most open and authentic voices in the entertainment industry, never shying away from sharing the messy, beautiful reality of her life.
Cher’s memoir is now available for purchase wherever books are sold, offering a personal and insightful look at the remarkable life of a true icon.
Read more: