Career
Turner used to visit nightclubs in St. Louis. At ‘Club Manhattan,’ she met her future husband Ike Turner, and his band ‘Kings of Rhythm.’ Ike recognized her talent and gave her chance to record with him as a background singer in 1958.
In 1959, she recorded a dummy vocal for Ike’s song, which was later sent to Juggy Murray, president of ‘Sue Records.’ Ike was paid a large sum of money for the recording and publishing rights of the song.
Turner and Ike started singing together and in 1960 their single ‘A Fool in Love’ reached the second position on the ‘Hot R&B Sides.’ Later on, ‘It’s Gonna Work Out Fine’ earned them their first ‘Grammy Award’ nomination.
The duo became popular and went on to sign with ‘Loma Records,’ a subsidiary of ‘Warner Bros. Records’ in 1964. They gave live performances all over the United States, and performed in shows like ‘Hollywood A Go-Go.’
In 1966, she recorded the song ‘River Deep – Mountain High’ which was released under ‘Philles Records.’ The song became a big hit in the UK, giving Turner an opportunity to open for ‘The Rolling Stones’ on their UK tour.
Around that time, Turner and Ike’s albums, such as, ‘Outta Season’ and ‘The Hunter’ were gaining success. Their revue also became popular in Las Vegas. These shows were attended by celebrities like Elvis Presley, Elton John, etc.
She signed with ‘Liberty Records’ in 1970 and came out with two albums, ‘Come Together’ and ‘Workin’ Together’ with Ike. Turner and Ike were becoming popular all over the country and were invited to be interviewed and perform at ‘The Ed Sullivan Show.’
In 1974, Turner released her first solo album ‘Tina Turns the Country On!’ with the help of ‘Bolic Sound Studios.’ The album was critically acclaimed and fetched her ‘Grammy’ nomination for ‘Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.’
Ike and Turner were still making music together. Subsequently, they ventured into gospel music, and released ‘The Gospel According to Ike & Tina.’ It became an instant hit, and they were nominated for ‘Best Soul Gospel Performance.’
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In 1974, Tina played the role of ‘The Acid Queen’ in the London-based musical ‘Tommy.’ Her performance made her famous in the UK, and in the following year she released her second solo album ‘The Acid Queen.’
From 1975 to 1978, she went through a rough period because of her marriage with Ike, who was an alcoholic and cocaine addict. It affected their professional association, and Turner stopped performing with him.
Turner tried renewing her career with her cabaret-styled performances in Vegas with the help of ‘United Artists Records’ in 1978. She also started appearing on shows like ‘The Hollywood Squares,’ ‘Donny and Marie,’ etc.
In 1978, her third album ‘Rough’ was released under the same record label. It was followed by ‘Love Explosion.’ Unfortunately, the albums failed to impress her fans, and she decided not to renew her contract with the company.
In 1980, with her newly formed association with Roger Davies, Turner was showcased at ‘The Ritz,’ New York. This gave her an opportunity to perform with Rod Stewart, first on ‘Saturday Night Live’ and then in his US tour.
In 1983, after signing with the ‘Capitol Records,’ Turner released ‘Let's Stay Together.’ The single was a huge hit in Europe and America. She signed a three-album deal with the record.
In 1984, she released ‘Private Dancer,’ which is considered to be her comeback album. The album sold about 20 million copies worldwide. The hit single from the album ‘What’s Love Got to Do With It’ earned her a ‘Grammy Award.’
Following the success of her album, Turner appeared in the movie ‘Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome’ in 1985. The movie was a huge success and her acting skills were honored with the ‘NAACP Image Award’ for ‘Outstanding Actress.’
In 1986, she released another hit album ‘Break Every Rule’ which has sold 12 million copies to date. In the same year, she published her autobiography ‘I, Tina,’ and received a star on the ‘Hollywood Walk of Fame.’
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She made history by performing with Paul McCartney in front of the largest paying audience in ‘Maracana Stadium’ in Rio de Janeiro in 1988. The event was etched in ‘Guinness World Records.’ The following year, ‘Foreign Affair’ was released.
In 1993, Turned signed the rights for the production of the movie ‘What’s Love Got to Do with It,’ which was based on her relationship with Ike. She also helped the female protagonist with her costumes and taught her dance moves.
She worked with the band ‘U2’ for the composition of a song in the ‘James Bond’ movie ‘Golden Eye’ in 1995. Following the success of that, ‘Wildest Dreams’ was released, and it went gold and platinum in the US and Europe, respectively.
In 1999-2000, she appeared on the ‘VH-1’ special ‘Divas Live '99,’ and then released ‘Twenty Four Seven.’ She launched a tour for the album, helping it achieve gold certification in the United States. The tour grossed over $100 million.
Turner was honored by the ‘Kennedy Center Honors’ in 2005, and various artists, including Oprah Winfrey, Melissa Etheridge, Queen Latifah, Beyonce, and Al Green paid tribute to her that night. President George W. Bush also appreciated her.
In 2008, she performed with Beyonce at the ‘Grammy Awards,’ and won a ‘Grammy’ as a featured artist for ‘River: The Joni Letters.’ In the same year, she embarked on her first tour in ten years, ‘Tina!: 50th Anniversary Tour.’
In 2018, she released a jukebox musical titled ‘TINA: The Tina Turner Musical,’ depicting her life in a nutshell. It was released in collaboration with Phyllida Lloyd and ‘Stage Entertainment.’ It premiered in London with Adrienne Warren in the lead. The same year, she released her second memoir ‘Tina Turner: My Love Story.’
Turner attended the ‘Giorgio Armani’ show in Beijing in 2012. The following year, she appeared on the cover of the German issue of ‘Vogue’ magazine, becoming the oldest person to appear on the cover of ‘Vogue.’
