Prince William recalled a cherished memory involving Tina Turner that involved his brother Prince Harry and late mother Princess Diana.
His comments on his favorite song by Turner resurfaced following the icon’s death on Tuesday.
“And one of the songs I massively remember and has stuck with me all this time, and I still, to this day, quite enjoy secretly, is Tina Turner’s ‘The Best’ because sitting in the backseat, singing away, it felt like a real family moment,” William previously shared in an episode of the “Time to Walk” podcast in 2021.
“And my mother, she’d be driving along, singing at the top of her voice,” he reminisced. “And we’d even get the policeman in the car, he’d be occasionally singing along as well.”
“You’d be singing and listening to the music right the way out into the gates of school when they dropped you off. When I listen to it now, it takes me back to those car rides and brings back lots of memories of my mother.”
The Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll’s death was announced Wednesday on Instagram. Turner died Tuesday, after a long illness in her home in Küsnacht, Switzerland, near Zurich, according to her manager. She became a Swiss citizen a decade ago.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Tina Turner,” the statement on social media said. “With her music and her boundless passion for life, she enchanted millions of fans around the world and inspired the stars of tomorrow.”
“Today we say goodbye to a dear friend who leaves us all her greatest work: her music. All our heartfelt compassion goes out to her family. Tina, we will miss you dearly.”
“Tina Turner was truly an enormously talented performer and singer,” Mick Jagger wrote on Twitter. “She was inspiring, warm, funny, and generous. She helped me so much when I was young and I will never forget her,” he concluded.
Lionel Richie shared his sentiments, saying, “What a life! What a show! What a talent! Your resilience was a lesson for us all. I will miss you, my dear friend! Thanks for the memories…”
Oprah Winfrey reflected on her connection with Turner: “I started as a fan of Tina Turner, then a full-on groupie, following her from show to show around the country, and then, eventually, we became real friends. She is our forever goddess of rock ‘n’ roll and contains a magnitude of inner strength that grew throughout her life. She was a role model not only for me but for the world. She encouraged a part of me I didn’t know existed… I am a better woman, a better human because her life touched mine. She was indeed simply the best.”
Throughout her illustrious career, Turner sold over 150 million records, won eight Grammy Awards, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. She was honored again for her solo career in 2005.
Turner began her musical journey in 1960 with the release of “A Fool in Love,” which reached No. 2 on the Hot R&B Sides chart and No. 27 on the Billboard Hot 100.
In addition to her music career, Turner ventured into acting, making her debut in 1975 with “Tommy” and later starring alongside Mel Gibson in “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.”
