Madonna honors her difficult relationship with her late brother with a touching tribute: “We always found each other again”

Madonna paid a touching tribute to her brother Christopher Ciccone, who died on Friday.

His rep confirmed the news to Fox News Digital, saying he died “peacefully” of cancer on October 4. He was “surrounded by love,” with his husband, Ray Thacker, and loved ones by his side.

On her Instagram, Madonna shared several photos with her brother over the years and began her caption with, “My brother Christopher is gone.”

“He was the person closest to me for so long. It’s hard to explain our bond,” she continued. “But it came from an understanding that we were different and society would make it difficult for us if we didn’t follow the status quo.”

MADONNA'S BROTHER CHRISTOPHER CICCONE DIES AT 63

Madonna shared a touching tribute to her late brother Christopher Ciccone on social media. (Gary Friedman/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Madonna recalled that they “danced through the madness of our childhood,” adding, “In fact, dance was a kind of superglue that held us together.”

“Discovering dance in our small Midwestern town saved me, and then my brother came along and that saved him too,” the “Vogue” singer wrote. “My ballet teacher, also named Christopher, created a safe space for my brother to be gay. (A) word that was neither spoken nor whispered where we lived.”

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He joined her in New York, “where he used his craft as a dancer and choreographer to support his sister Madonna's budding singing career,” the family's statement said.

Madonna wrote: “And once again we held hands and danced through the madness of New York City! We devoured art, music and film like hungry animals and found ourselves at the epicenter of all these things exploding.”

Madonna recalled in her post that “dance was a kind of superglue that held us together.” (Barry King/WireImage)

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“We danced on stage together early in my career and he eventually became the creative director of many tours. When it came to good taste, my brother was the Pope, and you had to kiss the ring to get his blessing,” she continued, acknowledging his contributions to her early career.

“He was the person closest to me for so long. It’s hard to explain our bond.”

— Madonna

“We defied the Roman Catholic Church, the police, the moral majority and all those in authority who stood in the way of artistic freedom!”

She also acknowledged the problems in their relationship.

“My brother was right by my side. He was a painter, a poet and a visionary. I admired him. He had impeccable taste. And a sharp tongue that he sometimes used against me, but I always forgave him.”

In her post, Madonna acknowledged their somewhat troubled relationship and said that Ciccone “had a sharp tongue that he sometimes used against me, but I always forgave him.” (ARNAL/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

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Their rift seemed to stem from several issues, most notably addressed in Ciccone's 2008 memoir, “Life with My Sister Madonna.”

In the book, he claimed that Madonna revealed his sexuality in a 1991 interview with The Advocate and claimed that her ex-husband Guy Ritchie was homophobic. He also noted that there was a turning point in their relationship when she took cameras to her mother's grave for her documentary “Truth or Dare.”

At the time, a representative for Madonna told the Associated Press that while she had not read the memoir, she found it “very disturbing” that he had “decided to sell a book based on his sister.”

In 2012, Ciccone addressed their relationship in an interview with the Evening Standard, telling the outlet, “As far as I'm concerned, we're fine. We're in touch with each other, even though I haven't seen them for a while.” We've been brother and sister again for a long time. I don't work for them and it's better that way.

Ciccone and Madonna once had a contentious relationship following the publication of his tell-all book Life with My Sister Madonna, although he claimed a few years later, “As far as I'm concerned, we're good.” (Getty Images)

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As siblings, Madonna shared, “We have scaled the highest heights together and failed at the deepest depths. Somehow we always found each other, we held hands and kept dancing.”

It was Ciccone's cancer diagnosis that apparently brought them closer together again.

“Together we have scaled the highest heights and reeled in the deepest depths. Somehow we always found each other.”

— Madonna

“The last few years have not been easy. We didn't speak to each other for a while, but when my brother got sick we reconnected. I did my best to keep him alive as long as possible. He was in so much trouble.” Towards the end, we were hurting again, holding hands, closing our eyes and dancing together.

“Towards the end he was in so much pain again, we held hands, closed our eyes and danced. Together,” Madonna wrote about her late brother. (Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images)

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“I'm glad he's no longer suffering. There will never be anyone like him,” she concluded.

“I know he’s dancing somewhere.”