In her final interview just six weeks before her death, Tina Turner said she wanted to be remembered as ‘the Queen of Rock ‘N’ Roll’.
The iconic singer died at her home in Küsnach near Zurich, Switzerland, today following a long, unspecified illness.
Her representatives confirmed her death, saying: ‘With her the world loses a music legend and role model.’
On April 9, in what are believed to be her final public remarks, she told The Guardian how she hoped the world would remember her – and how she did not fear death.
‘How would you like to be remembered?’ the Guardian asked.
‘As the Queen of Rock’n’Roll. As a woman who showed other women that it is OK to strive for success on their own terms.’
Asked what ‘scares’ her about getting older, she replied: ‘Nothing. This is life’s full adventure and I embrace and accept every day with what it brings.’
Tina Turner died at home today at the age of 83 after a long illness. She is shown in 2019 on the opening night of the Tina Turner Musical in New York City
A musical legend: Turner in 1997. In a recent interview, she said she wanted to be remembered as ‘the Queen of Rock ‘N’ Roll’
Sharp as ever, Turner joked about whether she’d like more sex, money or fame – ‘at my age, is there another option?’ and told how she was enjoying ‘anonymity in retirement’.
Turner is survived by two of her four sons – two preceded her in death – and her husband, Erwin Bach.
Among the first to lead tributes to her today was Mick Jagger, who she shared electrifying on-stage chemistry with.
‘I’m so saddened by the passing of my wonderful friend Tina Turner. She was truly an enormously talented performer and singer.
‘She was inspiring, warm, funny and generous. She helped me so much when I was young and I will never forget her,’ Jagger wrote.
Giorgio Armani, with whom she was close friends, said: ‘I heard the passing of Tina Turner with sadness and disbelief: with her incredible energy she seemed eternal. Her music certainly is. I will miss a great friend, whom I have also had the pleasure to dress many times. In life, she was like she was on stage – pure energy. I am deeply saddened.’
Born Anna-Mae Bullock in 1939 in Brownsville, Tennessee, to Zelma and Floyd Bullock, Turner overcame a turbulent childhood and abusive marriage to become a musical sensation and legendary performer.
In her early 20s, she found fame with the Ike and Tina Turner Revue, a live act with her former husband.
Behind their veneer of success and marital bliss, she endured brutal abuse throughout the marriage. They divorced in 1978.
Turner with Mick Jagger during the 1985 Live Aid concert in Philadelphia. It was an iconic performance with palpable chemistry. Turner toured with the Rolling Stones in the late 60s. In her final interview just last month, Turner admitted that she ‘always had a crush’ on him
Turner shared an equally electric on-stage chemistry with David Bowie
Turner, determined to succeed on her own and with four sons to raise, stunned fans and the media by speaking publicly about the abuse.
‘I wanted to stop people from thinking that Ike & Tina was so positive, that we were such a great team,’ Turner explained in an eponymous documentary.
By the early 80s, she was a musical powerhouse in her own right, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the world’s most revered rock stars.
Electrifying performances with Mick Jagger and David Bowie set her success on fire and she was quickly celebrated with awards and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Throughout her career, Turner won eight Grammy’s from 25 nominations and three lifetime Grammy Awards. Her final stadium concert was in Sheffield, England, in 2009.
In recent years, she has been memorialized by Tina – The Tina Turner Musical – in London’s West End and across the US.
She attended opening night in New York City in 2019 and dazzled the crowd with a brief performance.
In recent years, she has lived quietly with her husband in Switzerland.
An accompanying statement on the singer’s social media page today said: ‘It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Tina Turner.
‘With her music and her boundless passion for life, she enchanted millions of fans around the world and inspired the stars of tomorrow.
Turner’s palatial lakefront home in Küsnach near Zurich, Switzerland,
Turner is survived by her husband, 68-year-old Erwin Bach, and two adult sons
‘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 what is thought to be her final interview with The Guardian last month, when asked how she would like to be remembered, she said: ‘As the Queen of Rock’n’Roll.
‘As a woman who showed other women that it is OK to strive for success on their own terms.’
While the cause of her death has not yet been revealed, she spoke openly about her struggles with health.
Her husband Erwin donated one of his kidneys to her in 2017 following years of chronic kidney failure and a cancer diagnosis.
Turner’s early childhood in Brownsville, a town in rural Tennessee, was a modest one. Her parents were sharecroppers with a volatile marriage that became so violent her mother took her to live with her grandmother when she was 11.
Aged 16, she moved to St. Louis, Missouri, where she met Ike Turner.
He invited her onstage to sing with his band and became so impressed that he immediately offered her a permanent spot.
By age 20, she and Ike were fronting the Ike and Tina Turner Revue.
Tina and Ike with their sons in 1972, six years before their divorce
Turner shot to stardom as one half of a duo with Ike Turner. The pair married and had children but split in 1978 after what she described as years of abuse
By 1986, Turner had braved it as a solo artist. The risk paid off – she quickly amassed Grammy’s and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
The 2008 Grammy Awards where Turner, then 69, performed with Beyonce to an adoring crowd at the Staples Center and at home
Turner’s final performance was in 2009 at the end of her 50th Anniversary Tour. She is shown during the multi-city tour in the UK
Turner went on to launch a solo career, parting ways romantically and musically from Ike to branch out on her own.
In 1969 – a year after trying to kill herself with 50 valium pills – she was awarded her first solo Grammy award for The Hunter.
It wasn’t until she split from Ike in the late 70s and overcame bleak career prospects in Las Vegas that she launched a remarkable comeback.
Turner is survived by two adult sons and her husband Erwin Bach. The pair married in 2013 after dating for nearly 30 years.
Two of her sons tragically preceded her in death; in 2018, her son Craig, then 59, killed himself at home in Los Angeles.
In December last year, Turner’s son Ronnie died at the age of 62 from complications caused by colon cancer.
In December last year, Turner’s son Ronnie died at the age of 62 from complications caused by colon cancer
Tina Turner, 83, posted a tribute to her son, Ronnie, on Thursday after it was revealed he died outside his Los Angeles home at the age of 62
Tina with her late son Ronnie, left, and Ronnie’s wife
Ronnie’s death came only four years after his older brother, Craig, killed himself in his Studio City home at the age of 59. Craig is pictured here with their mother
