Andrianna Kalyviaris

04/11/18

Tina Turner Overcoming Adversity Paper

Tina Turner had some early life problems and a terrible marriage, but she

eventually overcame it all. On November 26, 1939, on a small farm in Nutbush,

Tennessee, Tina Turner was born. Tina’s birth name was Anna Mae Bullock. Her

parents were poor sharecroppers. Tina’s parents’ names are Floyd Richard and Zelma

Priscilla. During Tina’s early life, her parents split up and left Tina and her sister to be

raised by their grandmother. After the death of their grandmother, Tina and her sister

reunited with their mother in St. Louis. While in St. Louis, she attended Summer High

School and became a cheerleader. Tina was never satisfied with her looks, but later in

her life, she realized that her looks were one of the most defining features about her.

When Tina was about 16 years old, her older sister was working in a jazz club,

Club Manhattan, as a barmaid. A lot of bands would play at this club. One of the bands

was called The Kings Of Rhythm. Tina's sister was coincidentally dating the drummer

from this band, Gene Washington. Since Tina’s sister was working there, Tina began to

go watch bands with her. She would spend plenty of time at the Club Manhattan, and it

was where Tina first met her future husband Ike Turner. Since her childhood, Tina loved

to sing. She would sing along from the audience while watching the bands perform.

One day Gene heard Tina singing, so he arranged a microphone off the stage so the
audience could listen. However, the audience didn't know who it was. ("Tina Turner."

Contemporary Black Biography, 16 Apr. 2018)

During a recording session for The Kings Of Rhythm, one of their singers didn't

show up. Instead, they let Tina sing the lead on the track. The track was titled “A Fool in

Love” and became a huge R&B hit. (Biography.com) It even transitioned over to the

pop charts. After this, Tina started dating the saxophone player from the band. She

became pregnant at the age of 18. She had her first child, Raymond Craig, in 1958.

She then took up a job at a hospital to be able to better support her family. Luckily, while

working she got a raise from $15 to $25 a week. After Tina made some extra money,

the band and Tina starting touring. They were touring as the Ike and Tina Revue. They

soon released successful singles like “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine” and “Tra La La La La.”

By this time Tina and Ike’s saxophone player ended their relationship.

After the tour, Tina moved into Ike’s house. Tina addressed the media and

explained that her and Ike’s relationship were like siblings. While they were living

together, Ike called her by the name “Tina” instead of Ana. It rhymed with “Sheena,” the

jungle queen from a 1940s movie. ("Tina Turner." ​Contemporary Black Biography, 16

Apr. 2018)​ Ike told Tina to change her name to “Tina”, so she did. Tina and Ike's

relationship turned into love, and they started dating. In 1960, they had a son named

Ronnie Turner. In 1962, after two years of dating, they finally got married in Tijuana,

Mexico. Tina became the stepmother to Ike’s two children from his previous

relationship. Tina said she felt loyalty and gratitude toward her husband, however, she
also said that Ike was a bigamist since he was still married to another woman. ("Tina

Turner." ​Contemporary Black Biography, 16 Apr. 2018)

She later said in her memoir that, “Ike kept control of me with fear,” and was forcing her

to tour even when she was hospitalized with jaundice. ("Tina Turner." ​Contemporary

Black Biography, 16 Apr. 2018)

In 1969, Tina and Ike toured with The Rolling Stones in the United States, as the

famous band’s opening act. While they were touring, Tina and Ike started to gain a

larger audience in America. They started to appear on television. An American music

industry entrepreneur named Krasnow, who was working with Tina and Ike, got a call

from a legendary producer, Phil Spector. Phil talked with Tina and said that he wanted

her to sing on a record without Ike. ("Tina Turner." ​Contemporary Black Biography, 16

Apr. 2018)​ Ike, who was usually very controlling, agreed to the arrangement of singing

​ ina said that it was

without him. She recorded the album ​River Deep, Mountain High. T

“the beginning of (her) escape from Ike.” ("Tina Turner." ​Contemporary Black

Biography, 16 Apr. 2018). ​After Tina recorded the album ​River Deep, Mountain High,

Tina and Ike had even more electrifying live performances. This helped them become

more widely known in the music industry. Ike and Tina produced another big hit called

“I’ve Been Loving You Too Long,” written by Otis Redding. Tina then got more notice for

her stunning legs and her clothing choices for performances.

In 1971, Tina and Ike had another hit “Proud Mary”, which sold over a million

copies. After this, they began touring again with The Rolling Stones. After the tour, Tina

and Ike failed to score more hits until “Nutbush City Limits” came out in 1973, which was
on the top 5 U.K list. (Biography.com) Four years later, Tina appeared in her first ever

film. She played Acid Queen in “Who’s Tommy.” Not many black people around this

time were in films which made this a big accomplishment for Tina. After this film, Tina

and Ike released their final charting single, “Baby Get It On,” which only hit number 88

on the charts.

In 1976, Tina finally decided to leave Ike. During Tina’s marriage, Ike abused her

and she revealed that he physically and mentally abused her. She ran away from him at

a hotel before a scheduled concert with only 63 cents in her pocket and a gas station

card to her name. Ike tried to pursue her but soon realized she was determined to leave

him. Ike continued to harass and threaten Tina, but from a distance. She also had no

money because Ike kept control of all the finances. ("Tina Turner." ​Contemporary Black

Biography, 16 Apr. 2018)

To overcome her terrible marriage Tina began to put her life back together. She

was staying with friends, living on food stamps and earning money by cleaning houses.

She also earned money by performing in small venues. Then Ike sent the four children

to live with Tina. Tina and Ike officially got divorced on March 29, 1978. The same year

Tina got divorced she released another solo album called “Rough”, which didn’t make it

to any music charts. Even with massive debt from the cancelled shows from the last

Tina and Ike tour, she didn’t give up hope. With the help of an Australian manager

Roger Davies, who had relocated to the United States, Tina toured in Europe from

1980-1981. She started her U.S comeback with a performance in New York at The Ritz
Carlton. With an audience filled with celebrities, who appeared to love her performance,

Tina knew that with more hard work and dedication this was the start of her comeback.

In 1984, she finally got back into the record industry and released her solo album

Private Dancer​, which won four Grammy Awards and sold more than 20 million copies

worldwide. Her song “What's Love Got to Do With It” reached No.1 on the U.S pop

charts and earned a Grammy for Record of the Year. Her signature look, performing in

short skirts that exposed her famous legs, with very voluminous hair, and her raspy

singing, were all key factors to her amazing performances. This was the year her solo

career finally rose.

In 1986, Tina published her first ever autobiography called “​I, Tina.” ​This

autobiography was important to Tina because it revealed the things Ike did to abuse

her. The same year she released her autobiography she also released her second solo

album. It was called “​Break Every Rule.” ​The album reached No. 2 on the pop charts.

Two years later, Tina won a Grammy for Female Rock Vocal Performance.

In 1991, Tina was added to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which is another big

accomplishment. In 2008, Tina announced that she will be going on her last tour. Her

last tour was called “Tina! 50th Anniversary Tour.” This tour was the highest selling

ticketed shows in 2008 and 2009. In 2013, at the age of 73, Tina announced that she

was engaged to a German record executive Erwin Bach. The same year they got

engaged they got married in Zurich, Switzerland. After they were married they lived in

Switzerland. She then had gained her Swiss citizenship.

 The 2018 Grammys honored her with a Lifetime Achievement Award. During

this time, Tina revealed that she had forgiven her ex-husband for his abusive behavior.

Tina said in an interview with ​The Times​ “As an old person. I have forgiven him, but it

would not work with him,” and “He asked for one more tour with me, and I said, ‘No,

absolutely not.’ Ike wasn't someone you could forgive and allow him back in” (Tina

Turner Biography, March 21, 2018). Tina announced that in 1970s, a friend introduced

her to Nichiren Shoshu Buddhism. She found peace in rituals of chanting. Nichiren

helped Tina meditate by saying prayers. She later said, “The experience of singing

prayers together allows us to deeply connect on an emotional level.” (Tina Turner

Biography, March 21, 2018)

Tina’s meditation, prayers, awards, albums, undeniable talent, perseverance, all

her hard work, and the way Tina stood up for herself helped her overcome all her

problems and a terrible marriage.

Work cited:

Anderson, Trevor. "TINA TURNED HER CAREER AROUND: In the wake of divorce, debt and dismal record

sales, Turner mounted a stellar comeback." Billboard, 7 Oct. 2017, p. 64. Student Edition,

http://ezproxy.d214.org:2244/apps/doc/A508693175/STOM?u=dist214&sid=STOM&xid=90d02a06​. Accessed

13 Mar. 2018.

The Biography.com website. "Tina Turner Biography" A&E Television Networks, January 19, 2018.

https://www.biography.com/people/tina-turner-9512276​ Accessed March 13, 2018.

TheFamousPeople.com "Tina Turner" Editors, TheFamousPeople.com July 27, 2017 -

https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/anna-mae-bullock-3051.php​, Accessed March 14, 2018

"Tina Turner." Contemporary Black Biography, vol. 27, Gale, 2001. Biography in Context,

http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K1606001743/BIC1?u=dist214&xid=47c97380​. Accessed 13 Mar. 2018.

"Tina Turner." Newsmakers, Gale, 2000. Student Resources in Context,

http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K1618003002/SUIC?u=dist214&xid=6bf1d63e​. Accessed 13 Mar. 2018.