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Tina Turner died at the age of 83 following bouts of illnesses she dealt with for several years. The legendary singer, whose soul classics and pop hits had fans dancing and jamming to her songs for many years, passed away on Wednesday, May 24, 2023. She had a history of health struggles. In the years leading to her death, Turner suffered several health issues, including cancer, a stroke, and kidney failure. Here’s everything you need to know about what Tina Turner died from.
How Did Tina Turner Die? Explained
Throughout her long-standing 60-year career, the Queen of Rock was often vocal about her health challenges, which date back to 1978 when she was diagnosed with hypertension. In an interview with the European Health Kidney Alliance at the time, Turner said she had never tried to control her blood pressure. She explained that she had never been taught the effects of high blood pressure, leading her to consider hers normal.
With her condition left uncontrolled, the singer suffered a stroke in 2013. The singer eventually began to recover, praising Erwin Bach, who she had married just three weeks before the stroke, for helping her “keep calm” during her recovery. Her health, however, took a turn for the worse in 2016 when she was diagnosed with intestinal cancer.
After experiencing some undesirable side effects from her initial treatment, Turner decided to try homeopathic remedies, which only worsened her condition and caused her total kidney failure. Bach then donated his kidney to his wife in April 2017, which was mainly successful, although she did experience mild symptoms, including nausea, dizziness, and forgetfulness.
Two months before she died, Tina Turner admitted that her health was in “great danger.” Se reached out to fans on Instagram and shared this detail. The 12-time Grammy winner opened up about her struggle with kidney disease on March 9 in honor of International Kidney Day.
Turner died “peacefully” in her home near Zürich in Switzerland. On Wednesday, Turner’s team took to her Instagram page to announce her death. “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Tina Turner. With her music and boundless passion for life, she enchanted millions of fans worldwide and inspired the stars of tomorrow,” the statement read.
Was Turner Married?
Born in Tennessee into a sharecropping family, Turner rose to prominence as one of the backup singers for her husband’s band, The Kings of Rhythm. She soon became the lead singer, and the couple produced many hits in the 60s and 70s. The singer remained married to Ike until 1978 when she divorced him due to his constant physical and emotional abuse. Ike was so controlling that he changed her name from her birth name, Anna Mae Bullock, to Tina Turner without first consulting her.
Turner, however, went on to have an even more successful career as a solo artist in the 1980s. She married Erwin Bach just three weeks before she suffered a stroke in 2013. Bach was a significant source of support for the singer during her health struggle.
The pop singer detailed his support for her in her 2018 memoir My Love Story and 2020’s Happiness Becomes You: A Guide to Changing Your Life for Good. “He never reproached me for my mistake. Instead, he was loyal, kind, and understanding — and determined to help me get through all this alive,” she wrote in the 2018 memoir. “‘I’m happy to say that, thanks to my beloved husband, Erwin, giving me one of his kidneys, the gift of life, I’m in good health and loving life every day,” she wrote in 2020.
Did Tina Turner Have Children?
Tuner initially had four children and has also experienced some pain with her children. In 2018, Turner suffered tragedy at the loss of her eldest son Craig to suicide in 2018, who she had with her former bandmate, Raymond Hill. She lost another son, Ronnie, from her marriage to Ike Turner, in 2022.
The legendary hitmaker also had two adopted sons, Ike Jr and Michael, Ike’s children from a previous relationship. Turner’s life story inspired a 1993 biopic titled What’s Love Got To Do With It, which earned Angela Bassett an Oscar nomination for playing the star in a hit stage musical. She was also the subject of the HBO documentary Tina in 2021.
The Proud Mary singer is survived by Bach, 67, and two of her four children.
That wraps up everything about how Tina Turner died.
