Tina Turner dead at 83: Life and times of Ike Turner Jr, the singer’s adopted son
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: News of Tina Turner's death at 83 has stunned the world and sent it spiraling into grief. But Turner herself was never far from it throughout her life. Her personal life was never far from the headlines, especially when it came to family. Like his parents, Ike Turner and Tina Turner, Ike Turner Jr has also made a mark in the music industry. But his relationship with his parents was apparently not an easy one, since Ike and Tina had also not been on good terms. Their marriage was reportedly filled with abuse and violence, which forced the “Queen of Rock 'n' Roll" to flee her famous husband in 1976 with just a few amount of money and a Mobil card.
In 2017, on ‘The Jonathan Ross Show’, Tina reportedly said, “I walked out without anything and had to make it on my own for my family and everyone so I just went back to work for myself. It was very difficult and dangerous because Ike was a violent person and at that point, he was on drugs and very insecure. I had no money. I had no place to go.”
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“I just took a chance, I said, ‘The way out is through the door’ and while he was on one of his sleeping times, I just left the hotel, went out the kitchen way and down to the freeway,” she mentioned, before adding, “It was just time to not take any more. It was constantly abusive, other things going on, there was no control, there was no freedom, it was just the same this, same this, and the violence. You just get fed up and you say, ‘Life is not worth living if I’m going to stay in this situation.”
Difficult childhood
It has been said that since then Ike Jr has not been in Tina’s contact, whom he regarded as his only mother. The 65-year-old musician’s biological mother was Lorraine Taylor, but she’s believed to have separated from Ike when Ike Jr was just a child. So for him, his only mother was Tina, who also became a motherly figure for his biological brother, Michael Turner.
As per reports, the producer understood and learned about the music industry through his parents, who prioritized work over his studies. He had once reportedly said, “My father took me out of school at 13. I ended up running his recording studio plus going on the road with them. They made a lot of money on tour, and my father used to make me count it until my hands were grey.”
Not only were his educational years jeopardized, but Ike Jr was also allegedly subjected to abuse at the hands of his father, who once attacked him with a pistol after he assisted Tina in her work. But the Grammy winner reportedly forgave his father, after his death in 2007 because of a drug overdose. He also hoped that his mother, Tina, would do the same, but that did not happen.
Ike Turner Jr also says that Tina, who raised him from the age two and is the "only mother" he knew, abandoned him as she made a new life in Europe, wanting to put her past behind her. The musician told The Mail on Sunday, "I haven’t talked to my mother since God knows when – probably around 2000. I don’t think any of my brothers have talked to her in a long time either."
Tina had four children. Craig, who was born after she had a fling with a saxophonist as a teenager. Ronnie, her and Ike’s only child together, died in December 2022. Ike Junior, 59, and Michael, 58, were both born to Ike Senior and his first wife but later adopted by Tina when she married the star in 1962.
Family heartbreaks
The actress did not even become an attendee at his funeral. A representative of her reportedly shared at the time, “Tina hasn’t had any contact with Ike in more than 30 years. No further comment will be made.” But the Turners suffered another heartbreak when Ronnie died. It has been said that Ike and Tina’s only biological son had suffered from several health problems, like cancer, before his death in December 2022.
At the time, Tina posted on Instagram, “Ronnie, you left the world far too early. In sorrow I close my eyes and think of you, my beloved son.” Ronnie’s wife, actress-singer Afida Turner, had also shared, “MY GOD RONNIE TURNER A TRUE ANGEL HIUGE SOUL HIGH MY HUSBAND MY BEST FRIEND MY BABY I WAS YOUR MUMMY, YOUR NURSE YOUR LITTLE MONSTER...I DID THE BEST TO THE END THIS TIME I WAS NO ABLE TO SAVE YOU LOVE U FOR THIS 17 YEARS THIS IS VERY VERY VERY BAD I AM VERY MAD...THIS IS A TRAGEDY U WITH YOUR BROTHER CRAIG AND YOUR FATHER IKE TURNER AND ALINE REST IN PARADISE...SO UNFAIR.”