The legendary American singer Tina Turner, who will forever be remembered for hits such as Proud Mary, The Best, What’s Love Got to Do With It and Private Dancer, has died. She was 83 years old.
The singer has had several battles with her health in the last period – among other things, she suffered from cancer, suffered a stroke and kidney failure.
She became famous in the 1960s, when – then still with her husband Iko – she sang the songs River Deep, Mountain High and, even today, the popular party hit Proud Mary.
In 1978, she separated from the violent Iko and in the 1980s achieved an even more successful independent path. She was famous for her powerful vocals and energetic performances. In a career spanning more than six decades, she won six Grammys and was inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame – in 1991 first with Iko, and in 2021 as a solo artist. With more than 200 million records sold, she is still considered one of the best-selling female musicians.
She was born in 1939 as Anna Mae Bullock. She began her musical career in 1957 in the duo Kings Of Rhythm with her then-husband Ike Turner. Two years later, within the duo, she began presenting herself under the name Tina Turner and scoring hits such as It Gonna Work Out Fine, River Deep – Mountain High and Proud Marywhich also earned her her first Grammy.
She embarked on an independent journey in 1977. The first two albums did not bring her much success, then she The Best, What’s Love Got To Do With It and We Don’t Need Another Hero won her fans forever.
She received more than 160 awards and even set a record: in 1988, she managed to gather “the largest audience at a paid concert” in Rio de Janeiro – as many as 184,000 visitors. On her long journey, she met Queen Elizabeth, Princess Diana and received an honorary mention from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
At the age of 60, she announced that she was embarking on her last musical tour. She was ultimately dissuaded from the decision to live a quiet, off-stage life with her new husband, Bach, by two friends Oprah Winfrey and Sophia Loren. The popular TV presenter constantly urged her to return to music, and the biggest encouragement for the singer was Sophia Loren’s speech: “Tina, when are you going back to work? You were born with a gift, this is your duty.”
The title of the tour, with which she returned to the stage after a ten-year hiatus, was Tina!: 50th Anniversary. Tina Turner managed to achieve one of the best-selling tours of all time with her. In January 2018, the singer received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Tina Turner had a difficult childhood behind her, which she spent with a strict disciplinarian father. Later, she was the victim of violence by her husband, Iko, who could not accept that she was more successful than him. He began to use drugs and was physically on top of Tina.
Despite the fact that she and Iko became famous together in the 1960s, Tina became a bigger star and became one of the most respected and popular pop music stars in the world.
Source: Rtvslo
