49 Fun Facts About Tina Turner

What was Tina Turner's birth name?

She was born Anna Mae Bullock, daughter of Floyd Richard Bullock and Zelma Bullock; family and friends went on calling her Ann for the rest of her life.

In which state was she born?

She was born in Brownsville, Tennessee, the seat of Haywood County, and grew up in a small farming community nearby in the same county.

What crop did she recall picking with her family as a young child?

She picked cotton as a child on Poindexter Farm, where her father Floyd Richard Bullock worked as an overseer of sharecroppers.

After high school in St. Louis, what job did she take before her singing career began?

She worked as a nurse's aide at Barnes Hospital in St. Louis after graduating from Sumner High School in 1958.

What was the name of Ike Turner's band that she first saw perform in East St. Louis?

Ike Turner's band was the Kings of Rhythm; she first saw them at the Club Manhattan in East St. Louis and said she 'almost went into a trance' watching Ike play.

Whose blues ballad did she sing at an intermission, winning a spot in Ike's band?

She grabbed the microphone during an intermission and sang B.B. King's ballad 'You Know I Love You'; Ike had promised to let her sing but never followed through until then.

Under what name did she make her recording debut in 1958 on the single 'Boxtop'?

She was credited as Little Ann on 'Boxtop', a 1958 Tune Town single with Ike Turner and vocalist Carlson Oliver, two years before the name Tina Turner existed.

'A Fool in Love', Tina Turner's 1960 debut single, was written for which singer, who failed to show up to the session?

Art Lassiter missed the session, so she sang a demo vocal Ike meant to erase; Sue Records boss Juggy Murray heard it and insisted her voice stay on the record.

Ike Turner modelled the stage name 'Tina' on which comic-book jungle heroine?

Sheena, Queen of the Jungle: Ike chose 'Tina' because it rhymed with Sheena, and he trademarked the name Tina Turner so he could hire a replacement if she left.

What were the backing singers and dancers of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue called?

The Ikettes were the Revue's backing singers and dancers; their own 1961 single 'I'm Blue (The Gong-Gong Song)' became a top-20 pop hit in its own right.

In 1967 she became the first woman and first Black artist on the cover of which magazine?

Rolling Stone put her on its second issue, dated November 23, 1967, making her the first woman and first Black artist on the magazine's cover.

Which band did Ike & Tina open for on tours of the UK in 1966 and the US in 1969?

The Rolling Stones had Ike & Tina open on their autumn 1966 UK tour and their late-1969 US tour, exposing the Revue to rock audiences.

Ike & Tina's biggest hit, a Grammy-winning 1971 cover, was originally by which band?

'Proud Mary' was written by John Fogerty for Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1969; Ike & Tina's 'nice and rough' 1971 version reached number 4 on the Hot 100.

Which 1973 hit did Tina write herself about the tiny community where she grew up?

'Nutbush City Limits', released in 1973, was written by Tina about the tiny rural community where she was raised; it reached number 4 on the UK singles chart.

In the 1975 rock opera film Tommy, which character did she play?

She played the Acid Queen in Ken Russell's 1975 film of The Who's Tommy, and her 1975 solo album was titled Acid Queen after the role.

In which city did she finally flee from Ike Turner on July 1, 1976?

She left Ike in Dallas on July 1, 1976, slipping out of the Statler Hilton and running across a freeway to a Ramada Inn with 36 cents and a Mobil card.

In the 1978 divorce settlement, what was the one professional asset she insisted on keeping?

She insisted on keeping her stage name, Tina Turner, which Ike had trademarked; she also kept two Jaguars and her furs but took on the couple's IRS debts.

Which Australian manager took her on in 1979 after seeing her perform at San Francisco's Fairmont Hotel?

Roger Davies, then working with Olivia Newton-John's management, saw her Venetian Room show at the Fairmont in 1979 and steered the comeback that produced Private Dancer in 1984.

Her comeback single in November 1983 was a cover of which Al Green song?

'Let's Stay Together', Al Green's 1971 hit, was cut with Heaven 17's Martyn Ware and Greg Walsh; her November 1983 version reached number 6 in the UK.

How long did Capitol give her to record the Private Dancer album in 1984?

Capitol gave her two weeks to finish Private Dancer in early 1984; the album went on to sell around 10 million copies worldwide.

Which was her only number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100?

'What's Love Got to Do with It' topped the Hot 100 on September 1, 1984, and stayed there three weeks; she was 44 and it was her only chart-topper there.

Which British pop group had recorded her signature 1984 hit before she did?

Bucks Fizz recorded the Britten–Lyle song before Tina, but their version was shelved and stayed unreleased for well over a decade, leaving the song free for Capitol.

With which artist did she duet on a 1984 cover of Iggy Pop's 'Tonight'?

David Bowie duetted with her on 'Tonight', the title track of his 1984 album; released as a single, it peaked at number 53 in both the UK and the US.

Which character did she play as the ruler of Bartertown in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome?

She played Aunty Entity, ruler of Bartertown, in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985), her first film role since Tommy ten years earlier.

Which song did she record for Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome that became a transatlantic Top 3 hit?

'We Don't Need Another Hero (Thunderdome)' reached number 2 in the US and number 3 in the UK in 1985; the film's other song, 'One of the Living', won her a Grammy.

Who ripped her skirt off on stage during their duet at Live Aid in July 1985?

Mick Jagger tore away her leather skirt during 'It's Only Rock 'n Roll' at Live Aid in Philadelphia on July 13, 1985; she finished the song in a leotard.

What was the title of her 1986 autobiography, later the basis for a film?

I, Tina, co-written with journalist Kurt Loder and published in 1986, became the basis of the 1993 biopic whose two leads were Oscar-nominated.

In which city did she set a 1988 Guinness record for largest paying audience for a solo artist?

Her January 16, 1988 show at Rio de Janeiro's Maracanã Stadium drew about 180,000 people, then a Guinness World Record for the largest paying audience for a solo artist.

Her 1989 album Foreign Affair gave her a first UK number one album and which enduring hit single?

'The Best', from the 1989 album Foreign Affair, reached number 5 in the UK, and a 2010 Rangers fans' campaign sent it back into the UK Top 10.

Who wrote the title track of her 1984 album Private Dancer?

Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits wrote 'Private Dancer' for his band's Love over Gold sessions, but felt the lyric needed a female voice; Tina recorded it in 1984 with Jeff Beck on guitar.

Which actress was Oscar-nominated for playing her in the 1993 film What's Love Got to Do with It?

The same actress gave the speech inducting Tina into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist in 2021.

Which two U2 members wrote her 1995 James Bond theme 'GoldenEye'?

Bono and the Edge wrote 'GoldenEye' for the 1995 Bond film; produced by Nellee Hooper, it reached number 10 in the UK.

Her Twenty Four Seven Tour was the highest-grossing tour of which year?

The tour ran through 2000, supporting her late-1999 album of the same name, and was that year's highest-grossing tour, taking more than $100 million.

With whom did she perform at the 2008 Grammy Awards in her public comeback?

Beyoncé joined her for 'Proud Mary' at the 50th Grammy Awards on February 10, 2008; the same night she won a Grammy as a featured artist on Herbie Hancock's River: The Joni Letters.

In what year did she retire from live performance, after the Tina!: 50th Anniversary Tour?

The Tina!: 50th Anniversary Tour closed in Sheffield on May 5, 2009, and she retired from live performance after it, her last tour.

At 73, she set a record as the oldest cover star of which magazine's German edition?

German Vogue put her on its April 2013 cover at 73, which at the time made her the oldest person to have appeared on any Vogue cover.

Which religion did she practise from the 1970s, describing herself as a 'Buddhist-Baptist'?

Nichiren Buddhism: introduced to it in 1973, she chanted Nam-myoho-renge-kyo with the Soka Gakkai movement and called herself a 'Buddhist-Baptist'.

Whom did she marry in July 2013 after 27 years together?

Erwin Bach, an EMI record executive sent to meet her at Düsseldorf airport in 1986, was 16 years her junior; they married in July 2013 after 27 years together.

In 2013 she gave up her US citizenship to become a citizen of which country?

The citizenship test required advanced German, the official language of the canton of Zurich.

What organ did her husband donate to her for a 2017 transplant?

Her husband donated a kidney to her in April 2017 after her own kidneys failed; with a transplant looking unlikely, she had joined the assisted-dying organisation Exit.

Which actress originated the lead in the musical Tina in London in 2018, then on Broadway?

Adrienne Warren originated Tina in Tina: The Tina Turner Musical at London's Aldwych Theatre in April 2018, then on Broadway, where she won the 2020 Tony for Best Actress in a Musical.

How many competitive Grammy Awards did she win in her lifetime?

She won eight competitive Grammys, from Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Group for 'Proud Mary' in 1972 to Album of the Year as a featured artist on River: The Joni Letters in 2008.

To which company did she sell her music rights in October 2021, for an estimated $50 million?

BMG bought her music rights, including her share of recordings, publishing and name and likeness, in a deal announced in October 2021 and valued at about $50 million.

How old was she when she died at her home in Küsnacht on May 24, 2023?

She was 83, born November 26, 1939; her death after a long illness was announced by her publicist, and West End theatres dimmed their lights for two minutes in tribute.

Which 1986 album gave her the number 2 US hit 'Typical Male'?

Break Every Rule, released in September 1986, produced 'Typical Male', which peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, along with the singles 'Two People' and 'What You Get Is What You See'.

Her 2020 Kygo remix made her the first artist with UK Top 40 hits in how many consecutive decades?

Seven: the 2020 Kygo remix reached the UK Top 40, adding the 2020s to a run of chart hits that began with Ike & Tina in the 1960s and never skipped a decade.

Which singer invited Tina Turner to perform 'Hot Legs' with him on Saturday Night Live in 1981?

He had caught her show at the Ritz in New York, weeks before she opened three dates for the Rolling Stones.

Who introduced Turner to Nichiren Buddhism in 1973, while working at Ike's Bolic Sound studio?

Turner later likened chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo to singing a song.

Who played Ike Turner in the 1993 biopic of her life?

Laurence Fishburne played Ike Turner in the 1993 biopic of her life and earned a Best Actor Oscar nomination for the role.