Carlos Santana Says He Prayed for a 'Queen' Before Meeting Second Wife Cindy: 'She's My Best Friend' (Exclusive)

The rock legend married drummer Cindy Blackman in 2010, three years after he and first wife Deborah King divorced

Carlos Santana knew exactly what he was looking for when it came to love — and he found it in jazz drummer Cindy Blackman Santana.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, 75, opens up to PEOPLE in this week’s issue about his beloved bride, 63, whom he says he prayed for after his 2007 divorce from first wife Deborah King.

"I was meditating and talking to God, and I said, 'I need a queen to come home to share this. Love is unconditional, and I need someone who loves me and grows with me,'" he says. "And next thing I know, here comes Cindy. The way Cindy walked like a New York woman, filled with confidence. I was like, 'Damn.'"

Santana, whose life will be chronicled in the upcoming documentary Carlos, which will premiere on June 17 at the Tribeca Film Festival, and Blackman, an accomplished jazz drummer, were engaged onstage in July 2010, and married that December at the Ritz-Carlton in Maui, Hawaii.

He says the couple can talk endlessly about music, from Miles Davis to Jimi Hendrix, and also enjoy frequent trips to Europe, where they check out museums and discuss "genius" artists and creators like Pablo Picasso, Leonardo da Vinci and Igor Stravinsky.

"I've always been infatuated with strong women because my mother was like that," he says. "The way [Cindy] looks at me, the way she touches me, it’s like she’s my best friend."

Santana is dad to son Salvador, 40, and daughters Angelica, 33, and Stella, 38, with King, from whom he split in 2007 after 34 years of marriage.

The Grammy winner says their wedded bliss "dissipated" around the peak of his 1999 album Supernatural, as he was often on the road promoting the album.

Related: Carlos Santana Reveals How He Learned to Forgive the Man Who Sexually Abused Him: 'Open Your Hands and Let It Go' (Exclusive)

"Deborah told me that she thought I was living la vida loca while she was taking care of the children and the business. What was missing was us time,” he says. "When we divorced, it was very hurtful; it felt like somebody ripped my heart open and shot some dry ice in it. I couldn't believe it was over, because we'd never known divorce in my family."

Related: Carlos Santana Recalls Being 'Higher Than an Astronaut's Butt' at Woodstock Thanks to Jerry Garcia: 'It Was a Real Test' (Exclusive)

More than a decade on, though, Santana is thrilled he found a second chance at love.

"I know I have received what I needed, and now we share our life," he says of Blackman.

For more on Carlos Santana, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands everywhere Friday.

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