Tina Turner’s tragic past including son’s suicide death, abusive marriage and debilitating medical crises
TINA Turner enjoyed worldwide success as the Queen of Soul.
But the singing legend, who passed away Wednesday, had to fight to overcome a tragic past to achieve her bright future.
A family spokesperson confirmed “Tina Turner, the ‘Queen of Rock’n Roll’ has died peacefully today at the age of 83 after a long illness in her home in Kusnacht near Zurich, Switzerland.
“With her, the world loses a music legend and a role model.”
It wasn’t easy to become a global icon.
Born Anna Mae Bullock, Tina had a troubling childhood filled with poverty and mystery, picking cotton in the field around Nutbush, Tennessee.
Her mother, Zelma, suffered domestic abuse at the hands of her father, Floyd Bullock, before they both abandoned her as a child.
Domestic abuse would sadly be a constant in her early years, especially during her time with her ex, Ike Turner.
Ike was a musician, bandleader, songwriter, record producer, and talent scout, who was born on November 5, 1931, in Clarksdale, Mississippi.
He first rose to fame in the 1950s alongside his ex-wife, but was known for his work in the 1960s and 1970s.
Ike and Tina were early pioneers of the 1950s rock and roll wave and were known for songs like Poor Fool, Come Together, River Deep-Mountain High, and Proud Mary.
DOMESTIC ABUSE
Tina suffered years of ill-treatment at the hands of ex-lover and music partner, and finally fled her abusive marriage in July 1976 with just 36 cents in her pocket.
Looking back, Tina later alleged that her relationship with Ike Turner was physically abusive and in her memoir, My Love Story, Tina described feeling reluctant to wed, saying: “(Arguing) would just make him mad, and that might lead to a beating.
Adding: “I definitely didn’t want a black eye on my wedding day.”
She then claimed that he forced her to go to a brothel as the couple watched a live sex show.
“The experience was so disturbing that I suppressed it, scratched it out, and created a different scenario,” she said.
“People can’t imagine the kind of man he was – a man who takes his brand new wife to a live, pornographic sex show right after their marriage ceremony.”
AFTER IKE
After Ike died of an accidental drug overdose in 2007, she claimed in 2021 interview to be at peace with her ex.
“For a long time I did hate Ike, I have to say that. But then, after he died, I really realised that he was an ill person,” she said.
“He did get me started and he was good to me in the beginning. So I have some good thoughts. Maybe it was a good thing that I met him, that I don’t know.
“It hurts to have to remember those times, but at a certain stage forgiveness takes over, forgiving means not having to hold on.
“It was letting go, because it only hurts you. By not forgiving, you suffer, because you think about it over and over. And for what?”
COLON CANCER
Tina had four children with Ike — Ronnie and Raymond, both of whom preceded their mother in death, and the couple’s surviving sons, Ike Jr, and Michael.
Ronnie played bass guitar for a number of his mother’s tours.
On December 8, 2022, the 62-year-old was pronounced dead after paramedics rushed to Ronnie’s home in San Fernando Valley, California.
It was later confirmed that the cause of death was due to complications with colon cancer, per the Los Angeles Times.
Tina took to Instagram to issue a tribute to her son after his death.
“Ronnie, you left the world far too early. In sorrow I close my eyes and think of you, my beloved son,” she wrote.
SUICIDE
Craig Turner, 59, died only four years prior on July 3, 2018.
He was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his home in Studio City, California.
Tina later commented on her son’s death, noting loneliness as a contributing factor to the horrific situation.
“I think Craig was lonely, that’s what I think really got him more than anything else,” she told ET.
“I have pictures all around of him smiling, and I think I’m sensing that he’s in a good place. I really do.”
HEALTH WOES
Tina was plagued by ill health, including a stroke and cancer.
The soul and rock music legend also suffered kidney failure which led to a transplant in 2017.
Before the operation, Tina had been so ill that she was considering assisted suicide — which is legal in Switzerland, where she had full citizenship.
She joined the assisted-suicide organisation Exit, and recalled in a book: “It wasn’t my idea of life but the toxins in my body had started taking over. I couldn’t eat.
“I was surviving, but not living. I began to think about death. If my kidneys were going, and it was time for me to die, I could accept that, it was OK. When it’s time, it’s really time.”
SAD PASSING
While a cause of death has not yet been released, Tina admitted to years of neglecting her body, and expressed her regrets.
In her final post, she wrote: “My kidneys are victims of my not realising that my high blood pressure should have been treated with conventional medicine.
“I have put myself in great danger by refusing to face the reality that I need daily, lifelong therapy with medication.
“For far too long I believed that my body was an untouchable and indestructible bastion.”
She used the post to announce her support for a new international campaign for kidney health called Show Your Kidneys Love, where she said people could “read the whole story of my disease.”
She directed her followers to the campaign’s website, adding: “Here you can find out how your kidneys work, what the risk factors are and how you can keep these important organs healthy. Let’s show our kidneys some love!”
A family spokesperson confirmed “Tina Turner, the ‘Queen of Rock’n Roll’ has died peacefully today at the age of 83 after a long illness in her home in Kusnacht near Zurich, Switzerland.
“With her, the world loses a music legend and a role model.”