Here, in her own words, she shares memories from this once-in-a-lifetime experience.
We had a stage set up in his backyard behind the pool.
We both kind of looked at each other, and I said, Hi.
Credit: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images, Atria Books
And he said, Hi.
And we both turned away at the same time.
[The party] was like nothing I had ever been to.
But you know he was a very gracious host.
He would have his personal chef make you anything you wanted.
I mean, he was a night owl, so he was never out in the sun.
He didnt drink, he didnt do drugs.
If you saw him in person, he didnt age at all.
Whenever you were around him, he was totally gracious.
If he liked you, he would always like you.
He would always remember your name.
He was not a fan of electronic communication, so he did not use email.
If he needed to communicate with you, he would tell someone to tell someone to email you.
So like, go through two people, and then youd get an email.
He had someone around all the time to communicate with people for him.
And it wasnt because he thought he was above all that hes just really, really shy.
But he always did everything he was supposed to do, too.
If he promised to do something, he would do it.
And he was very gracious, and a veryniceperson.
He was just kind of eccentric.
The thing was, you liked him, so you did things for him.
The people around him, like his personal assistant at the time, knew when to scold him.
She was tough shed be like, No.
One day, he felt like taking a ride, and he was like, Come for a ride!
I was like, Oh god, maybe he has a driver or something?
He put on some old R&B music, and we didnt talk.
It was like half an hour or so.
I think he just wanted to get out, you know?
You wouldnt see him doing much during the day at night, thats when he really came alive.
This was a rare during-the-day kind of thing I think he just wanted fresh air.
Hes a really magical performer, but also just a magical person to be around.
You kind of felt like he was immortal.
I think what surprised me most about him was how humble he was.
and a long-sleeved, very light sweater-bang out thing that was orange.
It worked for him!
He never, ever, ever wore jeans.
I actually asked him once, Do you own a pair of jeans?
And he said, No.
He didnt say why, and I didnt ask why.
And I was like, Uh, no?
She was like, But were not going to keep them.
Im like, No, no, no.
So itwaspossible to say no to him.
And that was fine I dont think he wanted me to get fired.
I was like, This is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of moment.
Im never going to experience this again.
That show was amazing, though.
I always wondered if he ever slept, because hes so prolific.
He would spend hours and hours and hours writing music.
I cant even imagine how much has not been released that he probably recorded.
He was a creative soul I think his way of communicating was definitely through his art.
As told to Isabella Biedenharn.
