'Queen of Rock 'n' Roll' Tina Turner dead at 83

Music icon Tina Turner, known as the Queen of Rock 'n' Roll, has died after a long illness, her spokesperson said on May 24. She was 83.

Tina Turner has died at age 83

Turner, one of rock's greatest singers and charismatic performers, has died after a long illness, her spokesperson said on May 24. In a statement (per Sky News), they said, "Tina Turner, the 'Queen of Rock 'n' Roll,' has died peacefully today at the age of 83 after a long illness in her home in Kusnacht near Zurich, Switzerland. With her, the world loses a music legend and a role model."

Turner had several health issues in recent years. In 2016, doctors diagnosed her with intestinal cancer. She also had a stroke and kidney failure, undergoing a kidney transplant in 2017 (per the Guardian).

Turner is one of the most famous female vocalist in rock 'n' roll

"The Best" singer and her then-husband, Ike Turner, rose to fame with songs like "Proud Mary" and "River Deep, Mountain High" in the 1960s. However, Turner's fame skyrocketed once she began her solo career in the 1980s.

Many have called her the Queen of Rock 'n' Roll. Some of her biggest hits include "Let's Stay Together," "Steamy Windows," "Private Dancer," "I Don't Wanna Fight," and "It Takes Two," her duet with Rod Stewart. Outside the recording studio, Turner wowed fans with her energetic performances and taught Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger how to dance.

Turner also had a commanding presence on the big screen with her role as Aunty Entity in 1985's Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, which featured another of her hits, "We Don't Need Another Hero," Acid Queen in The Who's 1975 rock opera, Tommy.

Turner's life story has been depicted many times with the 1993 biopic, What's Love Got To Do With It, which earned Angela Bassett an Oscar nomination, and with a hit musical, Tina: The Musical. In 2021, she was also the subject of the HBO documentary Tina.

Turner will be remembered as one of the best rock 'n' roll singers. She won eight Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame twice, first with Ike in 1991 and finally in 2021 as a solo artist.

In 2018, Turner told Marie Claire South Africa (per the BBC) that her life hadn't been tough. She called it a "wonderful journey," adding, "The older you get, the more you realize it's not what happened, it's how you deal with it."

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