Tina Turner, iconic and trailblazing superstar, dies at 83

Tina Turner, one of the most iconic and best-selling recording artists ever, has died at 83. 

She passed away on Tuesday in her home near Zurich, Switzerland, after battling a long illness, stated her manager. 

Turner, who became a Swiss citizen a decade ago, came a long way — literally and figuratively, from her humble beginnings as Anna Mae Bullock, born in a segregated Tennessee hospital. 

She first started with the “Ike and Tina Turner Revue” as a side player to Ike, whom she married.

Known as the “Queen of Rock and Roll,” Turner won 12 Grammys and sold over 150 million records worldwide. She was voted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame — with Ike in 1991 and on her own in 2021. 

After touring for years with Ike, he would subject Turner to devastating physical, sexual and emotional abuse. Her mistreatment was chronicled in the 1986 memoir “I, Tina” and later in the stirring 1993 biopic “What’s Love Got to Do with It,” which starred Angela Bassett as Tina and Laurence Fishburne as Ike. 

Turner would divorce Ike and leave with virtually nothing save her name.

However, she would emerge as a solo artist and ascend to pop stardom in her forties, possessing the staying power that many musicians would envy. 

During this era, she would make memorable and anthemic songs such as “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” “(Simply) The Best” and “Private Dancer.”

Predictably, news of Turner’s passing gripped everyone she has influenced, from close friends to distant strangers and admirers more familiar with her story than her music. 

 

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