Tag Archives: Tina Turner

When news spread, that the iconic Tina Turner passed away on Wednesday (May 24, 2023), fans and loved ones around the world began mourning. One very close loved one of Tina’s was her decades-long friend, Oprah Winfrey.

When Oprah got the news of Tina’s death, she was vacationing in Italy, and cut the trip short to join her friend, Gayle King, on the  “CBS Mornings” morning show to pay homage to – and share memories of – the “What’s Love Got To Do With It” songstress.

During the TV airing, Oprah and Gayle confessed that although they were aware Tina “wasn’t doing well,” her passing was still a “blow.” Oprah also recalled how in 2019, Tina Turner made a surprising confession to her– she was “ready to go.”

Oprah’s Revelations About Friend, Tina Turner

Via Daily Mail: “I certainly was aware that she was ill, but I had seen her in 2019 and gone… to visit her in the hospital… And she had said to me then that she actually was ready to go, meaning ready to leave the planet,” Oprah told the morning program. “And I expected then that was going to be the last time that I saw her.”

Oprah also credited Tina’s husband and German music producer Erwin Bach, who she described as “the most extraordinary person I’ve ever known,” for “literally [willing] her to live.”

“She’s been through, you know, one health crisis after another,” she said, with Gayle adding: “She just kept coming back.”

In spite of the many health issues Tina struggled with in recent years — including back surgery in February 2023, a kidney transplant from her husband in 2017, two strokes, high blood pressure, intestinal cancer in 2016, and more — Oprah says Tina’s husband, Erwin — whom Tina was with for four decades (wed in 2013 after 30 years of dating) — “never gave up” with his push to keep Tina alive and as healthy as possible.

Oprah went on to express her gratitude for the friendship she shared with Tina, stating she was also “big fan” of the songstress. She then admitted that not only was she a fan of her friend, she was initially a “full on groupie, following her from show to show across the country” to catch her performances. Gayle added that Tina had “a deep, deep affection” for Oprah as well.

“It’s incredible when you meet somebody that you’ve admired for a long time, and they not only live up to what you hope that they would be but they surpass, exceed and transcend. And that’s what Tina was,” Oprah told Gayle.

Following her friend, Tina’s death, Oprah took to her website, Oprah Daily, to pay a touching tribute to Tina, while also revealing more unknown details about the time Oprah thought Tina would sadly pass away in 2019, and more.

In her online tribute, Oprah stated she learned of Tina’s death from Gayle, and that the news ‘stunned [her] into immediate tears’:

“I had been expecting to hear this news four years ago in 2019 after visiting her at a hospital in Switzerland, where she told me she was ready to leave this earth,” Oprah wrote.

“She said she had a full life and was ‘tired.’ I’m always wary when someone who is ill says they’re tired. It often means they are tired of the work and energy it takes to stay alive. I left the hospital thinking that would be my last time seeing her.

“I was on alert for a full year afterward, waiting to get “the call” from her devoted husband, Erwin. Instead there were calls with news of improvements, new treatments, therapies, doctors. There were setbacks and stabilization. I even received an invite to celebrate her 80th birthday, then her 82nd.”

“Becoming her friend was a blessing of a lifetime,” Oprah wrote.

In conclusion of their “CBS Mornings” tribute to Tina, Oprah summed up just how most of the Tina’s worldwide fans view her:

“She is our forever goddess of rock ‘n’ roll, who contained a magnitude of inner strength that grew throughout her life. She was a role model not only for me but for the world. She encouraged a part of me I didn’t know existed,” Oprah stated.

“Once she claimed her freedom from years of domestic abuse, her life became a clarion call for triumph. I’m grateful for her courage, for showing us what victory looks like wearing Manolos and a leather miniskirt.”

Tina Turner Expressed Her Fearless Views Of Death

In a 2013 interview with Oprah, Tina Turner shared her fearless views of dying:

“Even when it’s time to leave and go to another planet, [I’m] excited about that, because I’m curious to know what it’s about. Nobody can tell you because nobody has come back. …

I’m not excited to die, but I don’t regret it when it’s time for me. I’ve done what I came here to do. Now is pleasure. I’ve got great friends. I have a great man in my life, now I have a great husband and I’m happy.”

Tina Turner…rest in power, sleep in peace, feel pain no more, as your legacy continues to live on through us all, beautiful queen. 👑🕊 

I Love Old School Music family…we have lost a true icon today– Tina Turner has died at the age of 83 years young, and just five months after the death of her son, Ronnie Turner.

Here’s what has just been confirmed:

Via TMZ– A statement from Tina’s reps reads, “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Tina Turner. With her music and her boundless passion for life, she enchanted millions of fans around the world and inspired the stars of tomorrow. …

“Today we say goodbye to a dear friend who leaves us all her greatest work: her music. All our heartfelt compassion goes out to her family. Tina, we will miss you dearly.”

The 8-time Grammy Award winning singer was still in the midst of mourning her two sons she’d lost in recent years.

The most recent being her 62-year-old son, Ronnie Turner, who passed away in December 2022 from complications of stage 4 metastatic colon carcinoma. Ronnie was an actor and a musician, who adored his mother and his dad, Ike Turner.

In July 2018, Tina’s 59-year-old son, Craig Turner, passed away from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to the coroner’s report.

There is only so much pain a person can handle. And while her cause of death is currently unknown, it would not be farfetched if Tina Turner ultimately passed away from a broken heart.

May she and her sons rest in final peace. Her physical presence may be gone, but her legacy will live on forever. 💔

ILOSM family, ’round these parts, we learn something new everyday. And the little known facts we’ve uncovered about Sugar Ray Leonard’s wife — a.k.a. Randy Jackson’s ex-girlfriend a.k.a. the woman Tina Turner supposedly shot Randy over a.k.a. the ex-wife of NFL legend, Lynn Swann — is quite interesting, if we do say so ourselves.

We know that last sentence was a lot, so let us break it all down for you.

MEET SUGAR RAY LEONARD’S WIFE (RANDY JACKSON’S AND LYNN SWANN’S EX)

Boxing legend, Sugar Ray Leonard, has been married to his wife, Bernadette, since 1993. From 1979 to 1983, she was married to former NFL player, Lynn Swann. Approximately five years prior to marrying Sugar Ray, Bernadette was in a serious relationship with Randy Jackson a.k.a. Michael Jackson’s baby bro and former member of The Jacksons. That’s where this story gets interesting as hell.

You see, Bernadette’s history with Randy eventually became a rather rocky one, it seems. In fact, it was apparently so drama-filled, that it made national headlines back in the day…and it even dragged Tina Turner into the fiasco.

DETAILS: TINA TURNER SHOT RANDY OVER HIS THEN-GIRLFRIEND (SUGAR RAY’S CURRENT WIFE)? WHAT HAD HAPPENED WAS…

According to Randy Jackson, as well as Eddy Hampton Armon — Tina Turner’s assistant of 22 years…Tina shot Randy in one of the wildest celeb’ feuds ever! It all went down in 1988…but it wasn’t until years later that they publicly confirmed this.

Randy Jackson reportedly barged into Tina Turner’s house and stumbled upon Tina and this then-girlfriend, Bernadette Roby Swann, participating in what Randy insinuated as being some type of ‘affectionate’ encounter…and that’s when all hell broke lose Tina has never publicly denied this incident. Peep crazy dangerous details below…

Randy Jackson: “Yes Tina Turner Shot Me”

In 2011, Randy confirmed that Tina Turner shot him, to his Twitter followers when he was asked if the story was true. Check out Randy’s tweets:

“This is something many of u probably don’t know… Yes, Tina Turner shot me. I have the scar to prove it,” Randy tweeted.

 

“It was in the Eighties. And I don’t hold a grudge against Tina, she’s a great artist and asset to our industry. Having said that, there was no violence on my part, nor have I ever owned or carried a weapon,” Randy added.

He then hinted that something freaky was going on between the two ladies at that time:

RJ: “I went to Tina’s house to see my girlfriend. I guess I caught them off guard. Hmmm…Next question.”

RJ: “Having said that, there was no violence on my part, nor have I ever owned or carried a weapon.”

Tina’s Former Assistant Told All About The Reported Shooting

In a 1993 interview, as well as in his 1998 book, The Real T: My 22 Years with Tina Turner, Tina’s former assistant, Eddy Hampton Armon, gave further details about Tina’s reported ‘Wild, wild, west’ moment:

“Randy had fallen out with his mistress, Bernadette Roby Swann, and she’d fled to Tina’s house,” Eddy recalled. I opened the door to Bernadette and she sobbed: ‘I can’t take anymore. Randy’s threatening me.'”

Eddy says Tina took Bernadette into her bedroom to console her, telling Bernadette that she’s “got yourself an Ike [Turner],” referring to Randy Jackson, and that she “better get rid of him.”

Eddy continued:

“A few minutes later there was another ring from the front gate bell. It was Randy Jackson.

Tina told me not to open the gate, but he screamed, ‘Bernadette I love you, let me in.'”

According to Eddy, Randy eventually climbed over Tina Turner’s front gate and threw a flowerpot through her window. That’s when he says Tina went for her rifle, telling Randy to ‘Freeze or I’ll blow your brains out.’:

“She keeps two loaded weapons, a .38 revolver and a rifle, says Eddy. She grabbed the rifle, pointed it at the ceiling and fired a warning shot.

Everybody was stunned, but it didn’t stop Randy. He fell to his knees and begged his girlfriend to go with him.”

Eddy said Randy then “charged straight at Tina like raging bull,” and Tina calmly let off a second warning shot right next to Randy’s head to scare him. Legend has it that Randy was in fact scared by that point, and began fleeing through the window he’d previously climbed through…while simultaneously catching a bullet in his a$$, courtesy of Tina Turner.

Welp, I guess Tina wasn’t about to have another Ike-and-Tina-moment in her life. Sounds like Randy learned that lesson the hard way.

Luckily, Tina, who was about 49 at the time, was allegedly an accurate shooter that day and seems to have intentionally avoided hitting Randy’s vital organs. All seems to be forgiven now though…at least from Randy’s side of things.

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Ike & Tina Turner’s only biological child together, Ronnie Turner, tells the story of how his dad took it unbelievably hard when his mother left him in 1976, and how Ike NEVER got over it…up until the very day that he died.

After their bitter divorce, Ike and Tina had no contact in more than three decades even though their son, Ronnie Turner, was born. Ronnie said he saw a lot in his time as a child, while his parents were married. He said in an Ebony Magazine article:

“I know everything that has happened all through his life and through my parents’ divorce.” The musician and songwriter who learned to play the bass from his father added: “He [Ike] wasn’t happy and still working. I could just tell and feel it. He never acted like he got over the divorce….My father used to come to my house a lot. I never kept my phone book around. He used to ramble around and try to look for my mom’s phone number.”

Now, you know he’s talking about the days before we stored all our numbers in our mobile phones and that was not that long ago.

“A lot of people were trying to take my mom and do other projects with her,” Ronnie also added. “He was possessive. It caused friction. After a while my dad got introduced to drugs. To me, it was a setup…He was such a good, strong businessman that sometimes people will give you things to bring you down a little bit. Once he was brought down, he couldn’t pull away from it.”

Ike’s assistant and caretaker, Falina Rasool, added what she witnessed firsthand just how hardcore Ike’s presumed obsession with Tina was until his dying day.

“There was not a day that would go by that he didn’t watch videos with Tina. Two days before he died we were watching Tina. He could tell you everything that happened at that time, like the arguments before they got onstage. He could remember everything. Nothing altered his mind.”

Geesh! Didn’t know it was that deep for Ike.

We’ve all seen, or at least heard about the movie, “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” so we know about some of their history together, as well as the abuse Tina had to endure from Ike. But a lot of people don’t know about what Ike also went through before meeting Tina. Of course this doesn’t justify his actions by far, but it sure does explain a whole helluva lot about how he got that way. So here it is…

1. His dad was a minister who was beaten by a white mob and left for dead, because he looked at a Caucasian woman the ‘wrong way.’ Ike said he witnessed this trauma when he was only five years old. His father lived for three more years as an invalid in a tent in the family’s yard, before succumbing to his injuries.

2. Little Ike was then introduced to sex, at age of six, by a middle-aged lady named ‘Miss Boozie.’ Walking past her house to school, she would invite him to help feed her chickens and then take him to bed. This continued for some years. Ike claimed not to be traumatized by this, commenting that “in those days they didn’t call it abuse, they called it fun”. He was then later raped by two other women before he was twelve.

3. If you think that’s horrible and it was, his mother then married another man. This guy, the new stepfather was a violent alcoholic and he and his mother often argued and fought. After one of those fights Ike, now a little older, knocked out his stepfather with a piece of wood. He then ran away to Memphis, where he lived rough for a few days before returning to his mother. He reconciled with his stepfather years later, buying a house for him in the 1950s around the time Turner’s mother died. but there’s no doubt the dude had a rough upbringing.

Check this out from Ronnie Turner as he explains something deep about his Dad’s abuse on women:

“Part of inflicting pain on women brought out of the pain that was inflicted on him as a child. Had he not gone through that, he probably would have been a better man when it came to relationships and women.”

“That’s probably why every relationship I was in was surrounded by sex. Sex was power to me.”

Ike Turner was more complex than what we saw in the movie and because he had his most success with Tina, of course he would be devastated when she left. But then who could blame her for leaving? The things she went through in that relationship were extremely toxic.

It is rumored that Ike was married somewhere between 8 to 14 times and has several more children! This is a really tough situation because Ike was clearly a broken child who’s innocence was stripped away from him beyond his control and in turn, he became a broken man who needed to get severe help before attempting to be in any type of serious relationship with any woman. The cycle of life is a beast, if we never take the pain-bearing steps it takes to repair ourselves as people from the inside out.

ILOSM family, ’round these parts, we learn something new everyday. And the little known facts we’ve uncovered about Sugar Ray Leonard’s wife — a.k.a. Randy Jackson’s ex-girlfriend a.k.a. the woman Tina Turner supposedly shot Randy over a.k.a. the ex-wife of NFL legend, Lynn Swann — is quite interesting, if we do say so ourselves.

We know that last sentence was a lot, so let us break it all down for you.

MEET SUGAR RAY LEONARD’S WIFE (RANDY JACKSON’S AND LYNN SWANN’S EX)

Boxing legend, Sugar Ray Leonard, has been married to his wife, Bernadette, since 1993. From 1979 to 1983, she was married to former NFL player, Lynn Swann. Approximately five years prior to marrying Sugar Ray, Bernadette was in a serious relationship with Randy Jackson a.k.a. Michael Jackson’s baby bro and former member of The Jacksons. That’s where this story gets interesting as hell.

You see, Bernadette’s history with Randy eventually became a rather rocky one, it seems. In fact, it was apparently so drama-filled, that it made national headlines back in the day…and it even dragged Tina Turner into the fiasco.

DETAILS: TINA TURNER SHOT RANDY OVER HIS THEN-GIRLFRIEND (SUGAR RAY’S CURRENT WIFE)? WHAT HAD HAPPENED WAS…

According to Randy Jackson, as well as Eddy Hampton Armon — Tina Turner’s assistant of 22 years…Tina shot Randy in one of the wildest celeb’ feuds ever! It all went down in 1988…but it wasn’t until years later that they publicly confirmed this.

Randy Jackson reportedly barged into Tina Turner’s house and stumbled upon Tina and this then-girlfriend, Bernadette Roby Swann, participating in what Randy insinuated as being some type of ‘affectionate’ encounter…and that’s when all hell broke lose Tina has never publicly denied this incident. Peep crazy dangerous details below…

Randy Jackson: “Yes Tina Turner Shot Me”

In 2011, Randy confirmed that Tina Turner shot him, to his Twitter followers when he was asked if the story was true. Check out Randy’s tweets:

“This is something many of u probably don’t know… Yes, Tina Turner shot me. I have the scar to prove it,” Randy tweeted.

 

“It was in the Eighties. And I don’t hold a grudge against Tina, she’s a great artist and asset to our industry. Having said that, there was no violence on my part, nor have I ever owned or carried a weapon,” Randy added.

He then hinted that something freaky was going on between the two ladies at that time:

RJ: “I went to Tina’s house to see my girlfriend. I guess I caught them off guard. Hmmm…Next question.”

RJ: “Having said that, there was no violence on my part, nor have I ever owned or carried a weapon.”

Tina’s Former Assistant Told All About The Reported Shooting

In a 1993 interview, as well as in his 1998 book, The Real T: My 22 Years with Tina Turner, Tina’s former assistant, Eddy Hampton Armon, gave further details about Tina’s reported ‘Wild, wild, west’ moment:

“Randy had fallen out with his mistress, Bernadette Roby Swann, and she’d fled to Tina’s house,” Eddy recalled. I opened the door to Bernadette and she sobbed: ‘I can’t take anymore. Randy’s threatening me.'”

Eddy says Tina took Bernadette into her bedroom to console her, telling Bernadette that she’s “got yourself an Ike [Turner],” referring to Randy Jackson, and that she “better get rid of him.”

Eddy continued:

“A few minutes later there was another ring from the front gate bell. It was Randy Jackson.

Tina told me not to open the gate, but he screamed, ‘Bernadette I love you, let me in.'”

According to Eddy, Randy eventually climbed over Tina Turner’s front gate and threw a flowerpot through her window. That’s when he says Tina went for her rifle, telling Randy to ‘Freeze or I’ll blow your brains out.’:

“She keeps two loaded weapons, a .38 revolver and a rifle, says Eddy. She grabbed the rifle, pointed it at the ceiling and fired a warning shot.

Everybody was stunned, but it didn’t stop Randy. He fell to his knees and begged his girlfriend to go with him.”

Eddy said Randy then “charged straight at Tina like raging bull,” and Tina calmly let off a second warning shot right next to Randy’s head to scare him. Legend has it that Randy was in fact scared by that point, and began fleeing through the window he’d previously climbed through…while simultaneously catching a bullet in his a$$, courtesy of Tina Turner.

Welp, I guess Tina wasn’t about to have another Ike-and-Tina-moment in her life. Sounds like Randy learned that lesson the hard way.

Luckily, Tina, who was about 49 at the time, was allegedly an accurate shooter that day and seems to have intentionally avoided hitting Randy’s vital organs. All seems to be forgiven now though…at least from Randy’s side of things.

Source 1 | Source 2 | Source 3

You may not know this child actress by name, but you probably recognize her face from many movies and TV shows, including the biopic film, “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” where she played the young Anna Mae Bullock (Tina Turner’s birth name). She also made appearances in the TV shows, “Roc,” “ER,” “Touched By An Angel,” “Living Single” and many more.

Here at I Love Old School Music, the project most of us remembered her for was “What’s Love Got To Do With It.” And we were all kinds of caught-off-guard once we realized it had been THAT long since we’d seen her in 1993.

Actress, Rae’Ven Kelly, is now a 36-year-old woman. However, before we get into what Rae’Ven was left with no choice but to do to her parents, we need to first give this beautiful young lady her props for not only being a strong woman, but for growing up into the stunning, talented woman that we see before us today.

In addition to that, Rae’Ven has just let all of us, Old Schoolers, know just how old school we really are. Wasn’t she just a kid like yesterday?!!

Embed from Getty Images

The Unthinkable Thing No Child Should Ever Be Forced To Do To A Parent

In 2015, Rae’Ven dropped a fat lawsuit on her parents for $1MILLION, because they allegedly jacked her out of almost ALL her money, which she earned as a child actress. According to CBS Los Angeles, by 2017 ‘a Superior Court judge granted a judgment of more than $800,000′ to Rae’Ven as a result.

In her lawsuit, Rae’Ven also stated that she was being emotionally abused by her parents for years and that they tried to destroy her relationship with her then fiancee’ (whom she’s since married). According to Rae’Ven, her parents lied to her fiance’ by claiming that she had AIDS, which she said is a complete lie.

Rae’Ven’s husband, Sean Dinwoodie, also joined her in suing her parents, because of rumors they allegedly spread about him, jeopardizing his Christian reputation within his Christian community. The lawsuit states that not only did Rae’Ven’s parents allegedly lie and tell friends and relatives she had AIDS, but they also disapproved of their interracial relationship (her fiance’ is Caucasian). They hated it so much, that Rae’Ven says her parents went even further and spread the lie that she’d filmed porn movies and that her fiance’ was a gay pornographer- all of which are untrue.

The lawsuit also states that ‘Phyllis and Kevin [Kelly] (Rae’Ven’s parents) began to emotionally abuse Rae’Ven by telling her things like she is ugly; the only reason that Dinwoodie is dating her is for her money; that she is an ‘ungrateful heifer’; and that when Phyllis dies, Rae’Ven should not attend the funeral because Rae’Ven would be the reason for Phyllis’ death.” RaVen also says that her mother told her “I should have just aborted you.”‘

Now…if this ain’t an “Iyanla Fix My Life” type of situation, then we don’t know what is. It had to have been really painful for Rae’Ven walking into a court room to sue her parents. We hope that they can eventually resolve their issues, because there’s nothing like a parent-child bond.

-ILoveOldSchoolMusic, old school news with a new point of view. Remember to LIKE us on Facebook!

Source1, Source2

According to The Jacksons singer a.k.a. Michael Jackson’s baby bro,’ Randy Jackson, and Eddy Hampton Armon – Tina Turner’s assistant of 22 years, Tina shot Randy in one of the wildest celeb’ feuds ever! It all went down in 1988…but it wasn’t until years later that they’d publicly confirmed this.

Randy Jackson reportedly barged into Tina Turner’s house and stumbled upon on Tina and this then-girlfriend, participating in what Randy insinuated as being some type of ‘affectionate’ encounter…and that’s when all hell broke lose Tina has never publicly denied this incident. Peep crazy dangerous details below…

RANDY: “YES, TINA TURNER SHOT ME”

In 2011, Randy confirmed that Tina Turner shot him, to his Twitter followers when he was asked if the story was true. Check out Randy’s tweets:

“This is something many of u probably don’t know… Yes, Tina Turner shot me. I have the scar to prove it,” Randy tweeted.

**

“It was in the Eighties. And I don’t hold a grudge against Tina, she’s a great artist and asset to our industry. Having said that, there was no violence on my part, nor have I ever owned or carried a weapon,” Randy added.

He then hinted that something freaky was going on between the two ladies at that time:

RJ: “I went to Tina’s house to see my girlfriend. I guess I caught them off guard. Hmmm…Next question.”

RJ: “Having said that, there was no violence on my part, nor have I ever owned or carried a weapon.”

Tina’s Former Assistant Told All About The Reported Shooting

In a 1993 interview, as well as in his 1998 book, The Real T: My 22 Years with Tina Turner, Tina’s former assistant, Eddy Hampton Armon, gave further details about Tina’s reported ‘Wild, wild, west’ moment:

“Randy had fallen out with his mistress, Bernadette Roby Swann, and she’d fled to Tina’s house,” Eddy recalled. I opened the door to Bernadette and she sobbed: ‘I can’t take anymore. Randy’s threatening me.'”

Eddy says Tina took Bernadette into her bedroom to console her, telling Bernadette that she’s “got yourself an Ike [Turner],” referring to Randy Jackson, and that she “better get rid of him.”

Eddy continued:

“A few minutes later there was another ring from the front gate bell. It was Randy Jackson.

Tina told me not to open the gate, but he screamed, ‘Bernadette I love you, let me in.'”

According to Eddy, Randy eventually climbed over Tina Turner’s front gate and threw a flowerpot through her window. That’s when he says Tina went for her rifle, telling Randy to ‘Freeze or I’ll blow your brains out.’:

“She keeps two loaded weapons, a .38 revolver and a rifle, says Eddy. She grabbed the rifle, pointed it at the ceiling and fired a warning shot.

Everybody was stunned, but it didn’t stop Randy. He fell to his knees and begged his girlfriend to go with him.”

Eddy said Randy then “charged straight at Tina like raging bull,” and Tina calmly let off a second warning shot right next to Randy’s head to scare him. Legend has it that Randy was in fact scared by that point, and began fleeing through the window he’d previously climbed through…while simultaneously catching a bullet in his a$$, courtesy of Tina Turner.

Welp, I guess Tina wasn’t about to have another Ike-and-Tina-moment in her life. Sounds like Randy learned that lesson the hard way.

Luckily, Tina, who was about 49 at the time, was allegedly an accurate shooter that day and seems to have intentionally avoided hitting Randy’s vital organs. All seems to be forgiven now though…at least from Randy’s side of things.WHAT’S LOVE GOTTA DO WITH IT? 

Source 1 | Source 2 | Source 3

Ike & Tina Turner’s only biological child together, Ronnie Turner, tells the story of how his dad took it unbelievably hard when his mother left him in 1976, and how Ike NEVER got over it…up until the very day that he died.

After their bitter divorce, Ike and Tina had no contact in more than three decades even though their son, Ronnie Turner, was born. Ronnie said he saw a lot in his time as a child, while his parents were married. He said in an Ebony Magazine article:

“I know everything that has happened all through his life and through my parents’ divorce.” The musician and songwriter who learned to play the bass from his father added: “He [Ike] wasn’t happy and still working. I could just tell and feel it. He never acted like he got over the divorce….My father used to come to my house a lot. I never kept my phone book around. He used to ramble around and try to look for my mom’s phone number.”

Now, you know he’s talking about the days before we stored all our numbers in our mobile phones and that was not that long ago.

“A lot of people were trying to take my mom and do other projects with her,” Ronnie also added. “He was possessive. It caused friction. After a while my dad got introduced to drugs. To me, it was a setup…He was such a good, strong businessman that sometimes people will give you things to bring you down a little bit. Once he was brought down, he couldn’t pull away from it.”

Ike’s assistant and caretaker, Falina Rasool, added what she witnessed firsthand just how hardcore Ike’s presumed obsession with Tina was until his dying day.

“There was not a day that would go by that he didn’t watch videos with Tina. Two days before he died we were watching Tina. He could tell you everything that happened at that time, like the arguments before they got onstage. He could remember everything. Nothing altered his mind.”

Geesh! Didn’t know it was that deep for Ike.

We’ve all seen, or at least heard about the movie, “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” so we know about some of their history together, as well as the abuse Tina had to endure from Ike. But a lot of people don’t know about what Ike also went through before meeting Tina. Of course this doesn’t justify his actions by far, but it sure does explain a whole helluva lot about how he got that way. So here it is…

1. His dad was a minister who was beaten by a white mob and left for dead, because he looked at a Caucasian woman the ‘wrong way.’ Ike said he witnessed this trauma when he was only five years old. His father lived for three more years as an invalid in a tent in the family’s yard, before succumbing to his injuries.

2. Little Ike was then introduced to sex, at age of six, by a middle-aged lady named ‘Miss Boozie.’ Walking past her house to school, she would invite him to help feed her chickens and then take him to bed. This continued for some years. Ike claimed not to be traumatized by this, commenting that “in those days they didn’t call it abuse, they called it fun”. He was then later raped by two other women before he was twelve.

3. If you think that’s horrible and it was, his mother then married another man. This guy, the new stepfather was a violent alcoholic and he and his mother often argued and fought. After one of those fights Ike, now a little older, knocked out his stepfather with a piece of wood. He then ran away to Memphis, where he lived rough for a few days before returning to his mother. He reconciled with his stepfather years later, buying a house for him in the 1950s around the time Turner’s mother died. but there’s no doubt the dude had a rough upbringing.

Check this out from Ronnie Turner as he explains something deep about his Dad’s abuse on women:

“Part of inflicting pain on women brought out of the pain that was inflicted on him as a child. Had he not gone through that, he probably would have been a better man when it came to relationships and women.”

“That’s probably why every relationship I was in was surrounded by sex. Sex was power to me.”

Ike Turner was more complex than what we saw in the movie and because he had his most success with Tina, of course he would be devastated when she left. But then who could blame her for leaving? The things she went through in that relationship were extremely toxic.

It is rumored that he was married somewhere between 8 to 14 times and has several more children! This is a really tough situation because Ike was clearly a broken child who’s innocence was stripped away from him beyond his control and in turn, he became a broken man who needed to get severe help before attempting to be in any type of serious relationship with any woman. The cycle of life is a beast, if we never take the pain-bearing steps it takes to repair ourselves as people from the inside out.

Although the iconic, Tina Turner (82), has been with her husband of nearly 9 years, Erwin Bach, for several decades now, the pain of her tumultuous 16-year marriage to her former band member, Ike Turner, will never leave her. We’ve all heard the horror stories that Tina has given about the extreme physical and mental abuse she endured from Ike. However, according to what Tina told Oprah Winfrey in an interview, what we saw in her biopic, What’s Love Got To Do With It, was ‘nothing, compared to’ the actual abuse Ike tormented her with.

In the interview, not only did she reveal, in graphic detail, the first time Ike actually beat her, but we also learned that her childhood was clearly the reason for her willingness to remain in that marriage for so long. Check out some of the transcripts from Tina Turner’s interview and you can watch the full video below.

Tina: “My Struggle Started In My Mother’s Womb”

Tina revealed that it was the un-wanting she felt from her mother, Zelma, and the abuse she witnessed between her mother and father, Floyd, that conditioned her to accept abuse early on.

(At 18:16 mark of the video below) Tina Turner: “It [her childhood] was hell, but what I really want to say to the public is, my struggle started in my mother’s womb. I suffered all the way from childhood, right up until the end of Ike. And what kept me on course was me…something I believe I was born with, was always staying on track because I always prayed.

She [Tina’s mother] was about to leave him when she found out that she was pregnant with me and the fighting had already started, but what I liked about her was she always fought back. … When they fought, there was no him standing over her, she was a fiery woman.”

When Oprah stated “But you grew up watching your father beat up your mom,” Tina subtly corrected her to clarify that her mother didn’t get ‘beat up,’ but that they instead fought. For Tina, that seemed to make a difference in the way she perceived her mother at that time:

“I watched them FIGHT. No, never ‘beat her up,’ I never saw him win. She fought with sticks of wood and everything, I mean, she was really feisty.”

Her Mother Did Not Want Her

Tina: “She did not want [another baby] and I knew it … I was that baby. … I didn’t know what love was as a young child, but I was born independent.”

Tina Describes Horrific Day Ike First Beat Her

Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock) explained to Oprah, that Ike’s abuse started from his jealousy of her and the fact that she was garnering most of the attention from their band, Ike & Tina (in the video above):

Tina: “Ike’s problem was, he was a musician who always wanted to be a star…and WAS a star locally, but never internationally. … So he then changed the name (of the band) to Ike and changed my name to Tina, because if I ran away, ‘Tina’ was his name, it was patented…so he could own me. … Oh, he was smart! He wasn’t an educated smart man, but he had a common sense and a [real strategy], and a con. … I didn’t even know that was the name of the record and I started to feel something and he started to touch me. I really didn’t like it ’cause that was my brother, that was my friend….

That’s when Tina confided in one of Ike’s staff members, that she wanted to get out of the romantic situation that Ike was trying to put her in:

“It was just control,” said Tina. “Ike had sex with everybody around him…everybody’s wife. So then I said to the woman that was helping him at the time [that] ‘I don’t want to do this.’ I knew how Ike was, he always fought women, men, everybody. And my instincts told me I was moving into something that wasn’t going to be good.

The woman told Ike that Tina was considering ending their romantic ties and that’s when Tina says she received her first brutal beating from Ike:

“So then she said ‘Ike wanna see you.’ So I went into his room … He started it [the conversation] with, ‘What are you trying to do to me?’ And then the next thing, he would pick up something, because…when you play guitar, you can’t fight and play guitar. So he always fought with something…against the head- always the head- with a shoe stretcher, a wooden shoe stretcher! And it REALLY hurt! But I was still trying to figure out what was happening. … And so then, the beating came [as Ike was telling her ‘You’re just like all the rest’]…and I was down [on the floor] by then, really started to cry.”

Then Turner says Ike made her do the unthinkable immediately after giving her that first beatdown:

“Then he says, ‘Get in bed.’ That was REALLY awful, to have sex after…I HATE you, how could I let you…how could we make love now, if it’s LOVE?!! And then I laid there with a swollen head, just having sex, feeling like ‘You have REALLY gotten yourself into something.'”

‘Why didn’t she leave,’ is the question many may have, but for many battered women, including superstars like Tina Turner, having a clear, rational outlook in that moment, is not always that simple:

“I had nowhere to go, I had a child…I had nowhere to run, I needed to make money, I wanted to sing to make money,” confessed Tina.

Thankfully, for Tina and her children’s sake, she eventually decided to fight back in the limousine that day and run like hell afterwards, toward a new life, a new love, and a new evolution of her music career.

Mariah Carey’s ex-husband/actor, Nick Cannon, does not think it’s fair to the late Ike Turner, that he died “as a villain” in the eyes of many fans. That is the sentiment the “Wild N’ Out” host revealed in a prior interview with MadameNoire.

Ike Turner died in 2007 at 76, and while it’s true he was a helluva musician, it’s also true that his abusive reputation far outweighed his musical success. Most of us became aware of that fact, after Ike’s ex-wife/former bandmate, Tina Turner, released her biopic, “What’s Love Got To Do With It.”

Why Cannon Thinks Ike’s Getting Bad Wrap

Nick Cannon revealed why he thinks Ike’s musical impact should get more shine:

“That man passed away being a villain,” Cannon stated in his MN interview. “We have, like, villainized this dude. We don’t even give him his credit of being one of the pioneers of rock ‘n roll, for discovering the great Tina Turner. All we do is think he’s just this womanizing, just horrible villain that he was portrayed in the movie and I was just like, ‘Dang, Ike never got to tell his side of the story.’ And I’ve felt like that many times and in several relationships.”

Nick then said, that sometimes the “media be trying to ‘Ike Turner you’ and, yo, before I die, y’all not ‘gon villainize me. I’mma tell my story, dammit. I’mma turn up in this joint!”

The Tragedy Of Ike Turner Life That Most Never Knew

Speaking of Ike & Tina. We previously reported details we found out, after diggin’ into Ike’s background, in an attempt to gain some type of understanding of why the brotha was so violent. What we discovered was very interesting, yet not shocking, given Tina’s recount of the horrific abuse Ike inflicted upon her. In fact, learning of Ike’s past and his childhood traumas, actually brought clarity -but NOT justification (we think there’s a difference)- into what drove him to be so volatile toward Tina. Check out the old school facts about Ike Turner below:

Ike’s Dad Beaten In Front Of Him At 5

1. Ike Turner’s dad was a minister and was beaten by a White mob and left for dead because he looked at a Caucasian woman ‘the wrong way.’ Ike said he witnessed this trauma when he was only 5 years old. His father lived for three more years as an invalid in a tent in the family’s yard, before succumbing to his injuries.

Lost His Virginity At 6, Raped At 12

2. Ike was then introduced to sex at age 6, by a then middle-aged woman, he referred to as “Miss Boozie.” Walking past her house to school, she would invite him to help feed her chickens and then take him to bed. This continued for some years. Ike claimed not to be traumatized by this, commenting that “in those days they didn’t call it abuse, they called it fun.” In addition to “Miss Boozie,” Ike said he was later raped by two other women before he was 12 years old.

Fought His Abusive Stepdad

3. Ike’s mother eventually married a violent alcoholic, who often argued with and beat the hell outta her. After one of his parents’ fights, Ike (then a little older in age) said he knocked out his stepfather with a piece of wood. He then ran away to Memphis, where he lived rough for a few days, before returning back home. Ike reconciled with his stepfather years later, buying a house for him in the 1950s, around the time his (Ike’s) mother died.

Geesh! There’s no doubt Ike had a rough upbringing. Sure, his music was impactful – like Nick Cannon said – but Ike’s life was a walking biopic all on it’s own. There are probably many life lessons (of what and what NOT to do) to be learned from his story. Y’all agree?

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