American-born Swiss singer, songwriter, dancer and actress Tina Turner reacts on stage after the German premiere of the musical “Tina – Das Tina Turner Musical” in the Operettenhaus in Hamburg on March 3, 2019. (Photo by Georg Wendt / dpa / AFP) / Germany OUT (Photo by GEORG WENDT/dpa/AFP via Getty Images)
She was simply the best. Tina Turner, the stiletto-wearing, gravel-voiced diva who heroically escaped the clutches of a domestic abuser to strike out on her own as an international superstar, died at her home in Switzerland after a long illness. She was 83.
TMZ was among the first to report the news, via a rep, who did not specify the nature of the illness.
Proud Mary personified, Turner’s glorious career had two musical acts. First, she gained fame as the soul-stirring singer to the innovative guitar-playing band leader Ike Turner as part of the wildly popular Ike and Tina Turner Review.
Later, she became an inspirational icon, rebounding from domestic abuse to build her own brand of musical dominance with such runaway hits as “Simply the Best,” “Private Dancer,” “I Don’t Wanna Fight” and “What’s Love Got to Do With It.”
Here’s a look back at Turner’s career.
Singer Tina Turner wearing a fur coat as she poses next to a fountain on the eve of her first solo performance in Britain, at the Inn on the Park Hotel in London, Feb. 10, 1978. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)Singer Tina Turner performing on stage at the Hammersmith Odeon, London, February 1978. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)Popular American soul pop singer Tina Turner singing live at the Budapest Sports Hall, Hungary, Dec. 4, 1982. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)From left to right: Singer Tina Turner, chat show host Terry Wogan and singer and pianist Elton John at the BBC Television Centre in Shepherd’s Bush, London, Feb. 18, 1985. Turner and John were appearing on the chat show ‘Wogan’. (Photo by Steve Wood/Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)American singer, songwriter, and actress Tina Turner performs at the Brighton Centre, Brighton, UK, March 11, 1985. (Photo by John Rogers/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)US singer Tina Turner performs on March 30, 1987 at the Palais Omnisports in Paris, during the first concert of her new tour, the first one in six years. (Photo by BERTRAND GUAY/AFP via Getty Images)US singer Tina Turner performs on March 30, 1987 at the Palais Omnisports in Paris, during the first concert of her new tour, the first one in six years. (Photo by BERTRAND GUAY/AFP via Getty Images)Tina Turner perched on a motorcycle poses for the cameras at the Music Awards in Monaco on May 11, 1993. (Photo by JACQUES SOFFER/AFP via Getty Images)Tina Turner in Sydney, November 1993. (Photo by Patrick Riviere/Getty Images)US rock star Tina Turner is inauguarated into the brotherhood of ” Friends of Cahors wine” by the president and Cartier boss Alain-Dominique Perrin (L), watched by US photographer Herb Ritts, 14 May 1994 at the Chateau of Mercues, near Cahors, France. (Photo by GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP via Getty Images)French TV host Michel Drucker (L) speaks with US singer Tina Turner (R) during the recording of the TV show “Champs-Elysées” on channel Antenne 2, consecrated to French singer Patrick Bruel on November 24, 1989, in Paris. (Photo by JEAN-PIERRE MULLER/AFP via Getty Images)US singer Tina Turner presents her new single “GoldenEye” for the James Bond film of the same name in Paris on November 22, 1995. (Photo by JACQUES DEMARTHON/AFP via Getty Images)US singer Tina Turner sings during her performance at the Macy’s Passport ’97 fund raiser and fashion show September 18 in San Francisco. The show is to raise funds and awareness for the AIDS virus. (Photo by MONICA M. DAVEY/AFP via Getty Images)Tina Turner performs in the pre-gameshow before the start of Super Bowl Xxxiv between the St. Louis Rams and the Tennessee Titans at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, Jan. 30, 2000. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)Singer Tina Turner performs after the Walt Disney Pictures premiere of “Brother Bear” at the New Amsterdam Theater October 20, 2003 in New York City. (Photo by Mark Mainz/Getty Images)Tina Turner arrives at the “Goldene Kamera” Awards at Axel Springer House on February 9, 2005 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)U.S. President George W. Bush (C) and first lady Laura Bush (Center-R) stand with the Kennedy Center honorees, (L-R) actress Julie Harris, actor Robert Redford, singer Tina Turner, ballet dancer Suzanne Farrell and singer Tony Bennett December 4, 2005 in Washington, DC. The entertainers were all honored at the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony. (Photo by Eric Draper/The White House via Getty Images)Singers Beyonce Knowles (L) and Tina Turner perform onstage during the 50th annual Grammy awards held at the Staples Center on February 10, 2008 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)American-born Swiss singer, songwriter, dancer and actress Tina Turner reacts on stage after the German premiere of the musical “Tina – Das Tina Turner Musical” in the Operettenhaus in Hamburg on March 3, 2019. (Photo by GEORG WENDT/dpa/AFP via Getty Images)
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