Cyndi Lauper Says She Recorded 'True Colors' to 'Feel Better' After Her Friend Died of AIDS (Exclusive)

The LGBTQ+ community has always had an ally in Cyndi Lauper.

In the midst of Pride Month, the Grammy winner spoke to PEOPLE about the inspiration behind her 1986 hit single "True Colors" last week on the red carpet of the Tribeca Festival premiere of her new documentary Let the Canary Sing at Beacon Theatre.

"I recorded ['True Colors'] because one of my best friends was dying of AIDS," Lauper, 69, tells PEOPLE, referencing her longtime friend Gregory Natal's death at age 24 in the 1980s.

She recalled hearing the song for the first time in Let the Canary Sing. "I knew that the melody was stunning and the words were stunning," said Lauper in the film, noting that she wanted it to sound as though she was "whispering in someone's ear."

"I wanted to speak to a human being in the most tender spot," explained the powerhouse vocalist in the documentary. "I had to learn the power of a whisper."

Lauper said in the film that Natal's illness "totally freaked me out because in those days [AIDS] was a death sentence," noting that none of her friends would get physically close to him out of fear of getting sick. She was devastated when his life came to an end.

"He died of AIDS, and ['True Colors'] was for us to feel better," she tells PEOPLE. "He had wanted me to write a song for him, and I tried."

The performer and activist wrote and recorded a song called "Boy Blue," also released on 1986's True Colors album, with personal references to Natal's life. However, it wasn't a commercial hit. She previously told Rolling Stone in 2021, "Unfortunately, it turns out, pouring out your heart and your liver is not good for repetitive airplay."

"I wrote 'Boy Blue,' but the real song that was for him that became an anthem that he wished would be known was 'True Colors,'" Lauper tells PEOPLE now.

She's since used the message of "True Colors" to affect real change. In 2008, she co-founded True Colors United, an organization that offers "free training and resources on how to meet the needs of LGBTQ youth experiencing homelessness" and advocates for funding, services and opportunities to support such groups, according to its website.