Tina Turner was called the Queen of Rock and Roll for a reason. she performed on the music scene from the 1960s until announcing her end of her music career in 2009, though she made a brief comeback in 2020. For over 50 years, she reigned on the world charts, sold tens of millions of records, gave concerts all over the world. She gained immortal fame, but her personal life was not a bed of roses. “I’ve Had a Violent Life,” in a documentary filmed for HBO.
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She took her first steps on the stage in the early 1960s. That’s when she met Ike Turner
In 1956, Tina, then known as Anna, met Ike Turner. She was 16, he was 24 and had just toured with his band. She was infatuated with him and persistently tried to get his attention. Finally, delighted with her unusual voice, he invited her to join his band, the Kings of Rhytm. A year later, she became Tina, and the band changed its name to The Ike & Tina Turner Revue. The singer began to gain more and more recognition. This irritated Ike. They were already a couple then. The man wanted to have as much control over her as possible, so he proposed marriage. They married in 1962.
Ike and Tina Turner in 1974 (Source: United Artists Records-publicity release by McFadden, Strauss, Irwin., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
They married in 1962. On their wedding night, he took her… to a brothel
The marriage was not happy from the beginning. Years later, Tina Turner confessed that she agreed to the wedding out of fear. “When he asked me to marry him, it was for a reason. I had to say yes, or we would have started a war. I was forced into marriage, in an interview with CBS News. On their wedding night, Ike took her to a brothel.
I sat there in this filthy place, glancing at Ike out of the corner of my eye, wondering if he really liked it and how that was possible. It was all so hideous
– in his biography.
He abused her mentally and physically. “I was alive but I felt like I was dead”
Every argument ended for Tina with a black eye, a split lip. The first time he beat her with a shoetree with a metal wire inside. As she herself recalled, he reached for everything that came to hand. When he found nothing, his fists were enough.
I was alive, but I felt like I was dead. I didn’t exist
– in People Magazine. Ike controlled her with fear and threats. Physical and psychological violence was an everyday reality for the artist. He believed that she was his property, after all, he invented her stage name and made her a star. He couldn’t stand that Tina was more famous.
Eventually, Ike started using stimulants, including hard drugs. Cocaine addiction joined alcohol addiction. It was getting worse. Finally, Tina said enough is enough. One night after a show in Dallas, blood still on her clothes, she snuck out of the hotel. “I’ve had enough.” I had to leave. I had absolutely nothing. Only 36 cents, in an interview with CBS News. She hid from Ike for several weeks. They divorced in 1976, and her ex-husband left her with huge debts. However, Tina regained her freedom.
Tina Turner and Ike Turner in the 70s (Photo: Rob Mieremet, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons)
She finally found love. Tina Turner was with Erwin Bach for almost 40 years
It took Tina Turner several years to come to terms with the trauma. Thanks to determination, she managed to return to the top. In 1986, she met Erwin Bach, a music producer 17 years her junior. The artist then gave concerts in Germany. As she herself admitted, it was love at first sight. Three years later, Bach proposed to her for the first time. Turner replied that… she didn’t know what to say. She had to wait 23 years for another proposal.
This time he had timed it perfectly. […] He walked over to me and got down on one knee. He was holding a small box in his outstretched hand, a timeless gesture. “I’ve asked you before. Now I will ask again. Tina, will you marry me?
– in an autobiography. The wedding took place in July 2013. The couple lived in Switzerland for years. It was for Erwin that Tina left the United States, renounced her American citizenship. She repeated that he was her first husband and the only love of her life.
Reuters reported that Tina Turner died on Wednesday, May 24 after a long illness. She was 83 years old. The singer passed away at her home in Küsnacht near Zurich, Switzerland.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
