The iconic singers gathered at Tina Turner’s home in Switzerland shortly before her death on Wednesday
Cher celebrates her final moments with Tina Turner.
On Wednesday, the ‘Believe’ singer, 77, revealed she had been blessed with some quality time with the iconic singer before she died on Wednesday aged 83 after a ‘long illness’, her publicist confirmed. Bernard Doherty at PEOPLE.
Talk to MSNBC after Turner’s death, Cher opened up about how she was able to reunite with her old friend at her home in Zürich, Switzerland, and said the late singer “was really happy,” despite being “really sick.”
“I started visiting her because I was like, ‘I need to dedicate this time to our friendship, so she knows we haven’t forgotten about her,'” Cher added.
“So we would all take turns spending time with her and that made her happy.”
“[Turner] said, “I can’t spend too much time,” Cher continued. “Then five hours later we were laughing like crazy… She was having a great time despite being really sick and not wanting people to know about it.”
Related: Oprah Winfrey Recalls What Tina Turner Told Her ‘When Her Time Came to Leave This Earth’: She’d Be ‘Excited’
Although Turner’s cause of death has yet to be revealed, she had a long history of health issues dating back to 1978, when she was diagnosed with hypertension.
She then suffered a stroke in 2013, just three weeks after marrying her husband, Erwin Bach, 67.
After experiencing unpleasant side effects during her initial treatment, Turner turned to homeopathic remedies, which only worsened her condition and led her to total kidney failure.
Bach then donated his own kidney to his wife in April 2017. Although the procedure was largely successful, Turner still experienced mild symptoms, including nausea and dizziness, according to his interview with the European Kidney Health Alliance.
Speaking on Wednesday, Cher referred to Turner “having her dialysis machine at home” when they met, but added that she stayed “so strong” and “fought this disease for so long.”
“But I know, towards the end, she once said to me, ‘I’m really ready. I don’t want to put up with this anymore,'” the singer said of Turner.
Related: Angela Bassett Recalls Tina Turner’s ‘Last Words to Me’ as She Pays Tribute to Singer
Famously dubbed the “Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll”, Turner performed with Cher several times in the 1970s. The powerhouse duo met while Turner was still married to her abusive first husband Ike, and Cher recalled that Turner was “so free” when she finally left the music producer in 1978, after which they “really got so close” as friends.
“I was so thrilled. You could just see her being able to take a deep breath. Her new life was like a big fresh breath,” Cher said.
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Speaking to MSNBC, the singer revealed she received a pair of ‘Tina Turner’ high heel shoes as a gift from the late icon, before leaving her house.
“She was such a force. Honestly, I think she hit it all hard,” she added in tribute to Turner. “She wasn’t about to stop. She may not have won every battle, but she fought every war. She was there, fighting for everything she believed in.”
“She gave me a lot of strength at times, and I gave her a lot of strength too.”
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