Inside Cher's Sad Relationship With Son Elijah Blue Allman
To say that Cher has a complicated relationship with her youngest son, Elijah Blue Allman, would be an understatement. We've heard some heartbreaking tales of Elijah's addiction issues throughout his life, and at one point, reports claimed Cher attempted to kidnap him to try and save him. While these stories are sad, they're not exactly surprising because even before Elijah's birth, it seemed like he was fated to grow up in a difficult environment due to the rocky marriage between his parents, Cher and Gregg Allman.
In 1975, the couple tied the knot within a year of meeting, and Gregg's substance abuse issues heavily strained the relationship to the point that Cher filed for divorce after only nine days of marriage. They went on to split up multiple times but found their way back to each other before officially divorcing in 1977. As a busy working mother, Cher, whose real name is actually Cherilyn Sarkisian, wanted to protect her son from a tumultuous household, so she sent him off to boarding school. Unfortunately, the decision drove a wedge between them.
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight in 2014, Elijah shared that during his childhood, he felt "shunned" by his parents after they decided to send him away to boarding school at the age of seven. According to the arrangements made for him, he could only visit his parents during the weekend, but he would frequently spend the time away to score some drugs with his friends. As a result, his drug habit started when he was around 11, and it eventually grew into a full-blown addiction.
Cher reportedly disliked Elijah Allman's girlfriend
In the Entertainment Tonight interview, Elijah Blue Allman admitted that he believed his addiction wasn't quite as painful as his battle with Lyme disease. Nonetheless, he thought the ordeal had a silver lining because while getting treated in Germany, he was set up on a blind date with his future wife, Marieangela King. An elated Allman brought her home, and they started living together under Cher's roof. However, the women couldn't get along, so they moved out and cut contact with Cher.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Allman hinted that the rift between his mother and partner happened because Cher couldn't tolerate the presence of someone who would stand up for herself. Allman and King went on to get engaged, but much to his dismay, Cher never spoke about their union publicly and didn't privately reach out to celebrate the milestone. As a result, the couple didn't bother inviting the "Believer" singer to their wedding when they eloped.
Allman explained his point of view to the Daily Mail, saying: "I wasn't going to wait for anyone's approval and congratulations just like I've never waited for any of that my whole life. The way I eloped with my wife is the same way I've done everything I've ever done. I don't know any other way and we knew it was the right time." Allman shared that Cher retorted by not inviting him and his wife for Christmas. Meanwhile, King accused the "Strong Enough" singer of abducting her husband in 2022.
Cher filed for conservatorship over her son in 2023
Although Elijah Blue Allman and Marieangela King reportedly split up in 2021, they briefly reconciled during their anniversary in 2022. According to court documents shared by Rolling Stone, King alleged that when they were celebrating in a hotel, four men kidnapped Allman after barging into their room. King revealed that a kidnapper told her that Cher had sent them. She claimed that she had no way of contacting Allman because she didn't know his precise whereabouts but later learned that he was at a rehab without a phone.
Per King's account, after the alleged kidnapping, Cher kicked King out of her home without financial support. As a result, Cher got dragged into her son's messy divorce. Speaking to People in 2023, Cher denied abducting her son but admitted that the family was at odds because of his substance abuse problem. Sadly, things seemingly took a turn for the worse in December 2023 because Cher filed for sole conservatorship of her son's finances.
Court documents obtained by People explained the reason behind the decision. "[Cher] is concerned that any funds distributed to Elijah will be immediately spent on drugs, leaving Elijah with no assets to provide for himself and putting Elijah's life at risk," the documents read. As for what Allman thinks about it, the filing revealed that Cher is "unable to discuss his preferences concerning the appointment of a temporary conservator" because he wasn't in the right mental and physical state to decide his best interests.