The “Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll” and beloved singer Tina Turner, whose renowned career as a performer spans more than six decades, passed away at the age of 83.
“With her, the world loses a music legend and a role model,” her publicist, Bernard Doherty, said in a statement May 24. She died after a long illness in her home near Zurich, Switzerland, he said.
A post on her official Facebook page relayed the sad news of her passing.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Tina Turner,” the post said. “With her music and her boundless passion for life, she enchanted millions of fans around the world and inspired the stars of tomorrow. Today we say goodbye to a dear friend who leaves us all her greatest work: her music. All our heartfelt compassion goes out to her family. Tina, we will miss you dearly.”
In the 1960s, Turner first gained notoriety. She was known for her gravelly voice, daring haircuts, fashion sense, and vivacious performances throughout her life. She became a household name around the world because to songs like “The Best,” “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” and “We Don’t Need Another Hero.” Turner would later pen three best-selling autobiographies, the most recent of which being “Happiness Becomes You.”
She made her vocal debut in 1960 with the song “A Fool in Love” as part of a duo with Ike Turner, whom she eventually married in 1962. Bullock was born Anna Mae in Nutbush, Tennessee. In 1978, the singer and talent scout filed for divorce, and Turner later spoke publicly about the man’s verbal and physical violence. He died in 2007
She was listed as one of the greatest singers of all time by Rolling Stone in 2010. The vocalist was cited as an influence on performing artists including Beyoncé, Mick Jagger, and Mary J. Blige thanks to her eight Grammy victories.
“I’ll never forget the first time I saw (Tina) perform,” Beyoncé told Rolling Stone at the time. “I never in my life saw a woman so powerful, so fearless.”
A 2021 HBO documentary titled “Tina” traced the various eras of her life and covered the storied 1980s career comeback. She played Aunty Entity in the post-apocalyptic dystopian movie “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome” with actor Mel Gibson in 1985.
Raymond Craig Turner, Ike Turner Jr., Michael Turner, and Ronnie Turner were her four sons. At the age of 59, her son Raymond Craig committed suicide in 2018. Ronnie, who was also a musician, passed away from colon cancer at the age of 62 in December 2022.
Turner was selected as a solo nominee for the Class of 2021 of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She considered how this time in her life had helped her discover her inner “strength.”
“The silver lining was that through the hardships and heartbreaks, I discovered within me a strength that I could survive even the worst situations,” she said by email at the time. “I just needed to find a way to tap that strength and increase it because then I knew I would find the courage to stand up for myself and lead the life that I wanted and deserved.”
She went on to summarize her life as a story in just three words: “Hope. Resilience. Victory.”
