Closer to the Truth

Closer to the Truth is the twenty-sixth solo studio album by American singer-actress, Cher. Released on September 24, 2013, it is her first record since Living Proof nearly 12 years earlier. This marks the longest gap in Cher's six-decade album release history. The first single from Closer to the Truth, "Woman's World" was released in the US and Canada on June 18, 2013. Closer to the Truth includes songwriting from Timbaland and Pink, plus performances by the latter as well as the Scissor Sisters’ Jake Shears. Closer to the Truth will be released on white vinyl. This marks her first vinyl album release since 1991's Love Hurts. Cher's last album, 2001's Living Proof, was supported by her record-breaking world tour, which ended in 2005. After a three-year hiatus, she began a Las Vegas residency and it was then that discussions of a new album began. In December 2008, she was said to be planning a record of 1960s covers, but in 2010 instead turned her attention to a movie comeback in Burlesque. For the film, she recorded two songs, "Welcome to Burlesque" and "You Haven't Seen the Last of Me". During promotion for Burlesque, Cher confirmed she was working on a new album in Nashville. The project's genre was described as southern rock and even country. However, after the success of "You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me" on the US Hot Dance Club Songs chart (her seventh no. 1 on that chart), the musical direction of the album changed to dance-oriented pop.
Cher collaborated with Diane Warren, Timbaland, Mark Taylor (who produced her 1998 hit, "Believe") and Kuk Harrell in putting the album together. In 2011, she recorded Lady Gaga’s unreleased song, "The Greatest Thing", which was turned into a duet with Gaga and was produced by RedOne. Originally expected for release in September 2011, the song was eventually dropped from the album with Gaga's dissatisfaction and RedOne's unavailability cited as reasons. A rough demo of the song was leaked on August 13, 2013.