Turner, Tina, 1939-2023

Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was an American-born and naturalized Swiss[a] singer. Known as the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", she rose to prominence as the lead singer of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue before launching a successful career as a solo performer.

Turner began her career with Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm in 1957. Under the name Little Ann, she appeared on her first record, "Boxtop", in 1958. In 1960, she debuted as Tina Turner with the hit duet single "A Fool in Love". The duo Ike & Tina Turner became "one of the most formidable live acts in history".[7] They released hits such as "It's Gonna Work Out Fine", "River Deep – Mountain High", "Proud Mary", and "Nutbush City Limits", before disbanding in 1976.

In the 1980s, Turner launched "one of the greatest comebacks in music history".[8] Her 1984 multi-platinum album Private Dancer contained the hit song "What's Love Got to Do with It", which won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year and became her first and only number-one song on the Billboard Hot 100. Aged 44, she was the oldest female solo artist to top the Hot 100.[9] Her chart success continued with "Better Be Good to Me", "Private Dancer", "We Don't Need Another Hero (Thunderdome)", "Typical Male", "The Best", "I Don't Wanna Fight", and "GoldenEye". During her Break Every Rule World Tour in 1988, she set a then-Guinness World Record for the largest paying audience (180,000) for a solo performer.[10]

Turner also acted in the films Tommy (1975) and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985). In 1993, What's Love Got to Do with It, a biographical film adapted from her autobiography I, Tina: My Life Story, was released. In 2009, Turner retired after completing her Tina!: 50th Anniversary Tour, which is the 15th-highest-grossing tour of the 2000s. In 2018, she became the subject of the jukebox musical Tina.

Having sold over 100 million records worldwide, Turner is one of the best-selling recording artists of all time. She received 12 Grammy Awards, which include eight competitive awards, three Grammy Hall of Fame awards and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. She was the first black artist and first woman to be on the cover of Rolling Stone. Rolling Stone ranked her among the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time and the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time.[11] Turner had a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and the St. Louis Walk of Fame. She was twice inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, with Ike Turner in 1991 and as a solo artist in 2021.[12] She was also a 2005 recipient of the Kennedy Center Honors and Women of the Year award.[13]

Turner died on May 24, 2023, aged 83, following a long illness.[14]

Early life
Turner was born Anna Mae Bullock on November 26, 1939,[b][15][16] in Brownsville, Tennessee As a teenager, Bullock worked as a domestic worker for the Henderson family. She graduated from Sumner High School in 1958.[36] After her graduation, Bullock worked as a nurse's aide at Barnes-Jewish Hospital.[37] One night in 1957, she got hold of the microphone from Kings of Rhythm drummer Eugene Washington during an intermission and she sang the B.B. King blues ballad, "You Know I Love You".[41][42] Upon hearing her sing, Turner asked her if she knew more songs. She sang the rest of the night and became a featured vocalist with his band Murray also convinced Turner to make Bullock "the star of the show".[53] Turner responded by renaming her "Tina" because it rhymed with Sheena;[51][54] however, family and friends still called her Ann.[55][56] He was inspired by Sheena, Queen of the Jungle and Nyoka the Jungle Girl to create her stage persona.[57][58] Turner added his last name and trademarked the name as a form of protection, so that if Bullock left him like his previous singers had, he could replace her with another "Tina Turner".[59]

Early success: 1960–1965

Ike & Tina Turner on the cover of Cash Box, June 30, 1962
Bullock was introduced to the public as Tina Turner with the single "A Fool in Love" in July 1960. On May 24, 2023, Turner died at her home in Küsnacht, Switzerland, aged 83, following a long illness, including cancer, strokes, and kidney failure in her final years