Content Warning: This article touches on the topic of domestic violence which may be triggering for some readers.
Cher has opened up about a poignant moment from her past when she offered advice to her late friend, Tina Turner, on how to leave an abusive relationship.
Tina, who passed away in May 2023 at the age of 83, was celebrated as the Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll.
However, her rise to fame was marred by the trauma of her tumultuous marriage to Ike Turner.
In her newly released memoir Cher: The Memoir – Part One, Cher recalled a heartbreaking encounter in the late 1970s when both Turners appeared as guests on her variety show, Cher.
“One of the days we were shooting, [Tina] came to my room before we went on asking if I had some cover-up,” Cher wrote.
“She had a bruise on her arm she didn’t want showing on camera. I told her I had something that would work. She sat down while I looked for it and then quietly said, very straightforward, ‘Tell me how you left him.’”
At the time, Cher had recently ended her own troubled marriage to Sonny Bono. She married Sonny in 1969 and divorced in 1975.
Cher’s response was as straightforward as it was powerful: “I just walked out and kept going.”
The Believe singer then shared that her words of encouragement for Tina were inspired by the advice she herself received years earlier from Lucille Ball.
When contemplating her own escape from Sonny, Cher had turned to the comedy legend for guidance.
“I called Lucille Ball to ask for her advice,” Cher recollected. “I told her, ‘Lucy, I want to leave Sonny and you’re the only one I know that’s ever been in this same situation. What should I do?’”
Tina Turner eventually left Ike in 1976. She famously walked out with little more than the clothes on her back after a particularly violent incident.
If you or someone you know has been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, help is always available. Call 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit their website.
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