ET spoke with the singer just moments before she met the iconic performer at the 2018 Kennedy Center Honors.
No matter who you are, getting to meet Cher is going to be a highlight of your life, even for Kelly Clarkson.
ET's Brooke Anderson spoke with the "Piece By Piece" singer at the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, where Cher was one of the night's recipients, and cameras were rolling when Clarkson ran into the musical icon for the first time on the red carpet.
"Hi! I'm Kelly Clarkson! Nice to meet you!" the singer gushed as Cher smiled brightly. "I have never met you, I've been talking about you this whole time going, 'She's right behind me!!'"
Clarkson was adorably flustered by the chance encounter and fan-girled out as she praised the Oscar-winning entertainer.
"I'm a big fan, obviously everyone here is, I'm gonna stop talking," Clarkson said, laughing. "OK, yeah, I get very nervous."
"I'm so happy to meet you!" Cher responded with a genuine warmth.
"I'm so proud of y'all tonight," Clarkson shared. "I'm here singing for Reba [McEntire], but I was so jealous! I was like, 'Can I sing for Cher too?'"
Clarkson celebrated meeting the legendary artist on Twitter, sharing a snapshot of the two of them standing side-by-side on the red carpet.
"I met Cher!!!" Clarkson captioned the pic. "My life is better than everyone else’s today!"
While the Voice coach clearly loves Cher, it's her relationship with McEntire -- another of the night's honorees -- that brought her out to D.C. for the gala event, where she performed as part of the evening's events, in celebration of the country queen.
Speaking of McEntire's big night, Clarkson marveled at the magnitude of the honor.
"It's just such a prestigious award to get in the first place, so that's amazing. Especially [since] I thought maybe she already had this. Like, I didn't know," Clarkson admitted to ET of her former mother-in-law and close friend. "So whenever they called and asked if I would sing with her I was like, 'Of course!'"
"[I'm] insanely busy but I'd do anything for her because she's really been not only such a cool idol musically, but a really great friend and a great family member," Clarkson continued. "She's just a really impeccable human."
Check out Clarkson's performance when the 41st Annual Kennedy Center Honors ceremony airs Dec. 26 on CBS.
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