Cher pays tribute to the late Betty White with a heartfelt performance on NBC’s upcoming remembrance special, dubbed Celebrating Betty White: America’s Golden Girl.
During the upcoming tribute special, the legendary singer will make a special appearance to honor the beloved late actress with a performance of “Thank You For Being A Friend,” the theme song to her famed TV show, The Golden Girls.
Taped on the original Golden Girls sound stage in Hollywood, California, Cher, wearing a tan jacket and black pants, performed the iconic TV show theme song in White’s honor.
“This was a great honor for me. I’ve loved Betty since I was 7, & change,” Cher wrote on Twitter. “‘Life With Elizabeth,’ plus we did sing on Sonny & Cher Show. Betty taught me to speak like a southerner.”
Watch Cher’s tribute to Betty White below.
President Joe Biden, Drew Barrymore, Valerie Bertinelli, Cher, Bryan Cranston, Ted Danson, Ellen DeGeneres, Jimmy Fallon, Tina Fey, Ana Gasteyer, Goldie Hawn, Vicki Lawrence, Jane Leeves, Jay Leno, Anthony Mackie, Wendie Malick, Joel McHale, Tracy Morgan, Jean Smart, Mary Steenburgen and more will come together to pay tribute to the late actress during the NBC tribute special.
Celebrating Betty White: America’s Golden Girl will air Monday, Jan. 31 at 10/9c on NBC.
White passed away at the age of 99 on New Year’s Eve (Dec. 31), which at the time her cause of death was unknown, however, on Monday (Jan. 10), TMZ reported that according to her death certificate, her cause of death was due to a “cerebrovascular accident,” which is “a loss of blood flow to part of the brain, resulting in brain tissue damage.”
TMZ also reported that her death certificate revealed that White suffered a stroke six days before her death. However, sources say White was alert and coherent following the stroke, and that she died peacefully in her sleep in her home.
White, who would have turned 100 on January 17, was a trailblazing entertainer. She starred in multiple shows throughout the past eight decades, including her most famous role as Rose Nylund in the famous sitcom The Golden Girls.
White was an eight-time Emmy Award winner and held the record for the longest TV career of any entertainer after making her acting debut in 1939.
“Even though Betty was about to be 100, I thought she would live forever,” her agent and longtime friend Jeff Witjas told PEOPLE in a statement. “I will miss her terribly and so will the animal world that she loved so much. I don’t think Betty ever feared passing because she always wanted to be with her most beloved husband Allen Ludden. She believed she would be with him again.”
Born in a suburb of Chicago in 1922, White was the only child of Tess and Horace White.
The family soon relocated to California where she was introduced to Hollywood.
After landing the lead role in a school play, she made her television debut just a month after graduating from high school.
Her credits include The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Proposal, Lake Placid, Hot in Cleveland, The Bold and the Beautiful and more.
