Tina Turner dead at 83: Singer once opened up about son Craig Turner's tragic suicide
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: News of Tina Turner's death at 83 has stunned the world and sent it spiralling into grief. But Turner herself was never far from it through her life.
Turner opened up about the tragic death of her son Craig Turner who committed suicide in 2018. She had previously described the death of her son as "my saddest moment as a mother" and shared that she was shocked by his death given he had a new girlfriend and a new job.
Tina told BBC News, "I still don’t know what took him to the edge because, at that stage, he had said to me that he had never met a woman that he felt that way about. He was bringing her to meet me [for] his birthday in August. He had decorated his apartment that I bought him years ago. He had gotten a new job with a prominent real estate company in California [which] he was very happy with".
Tina Turner Opens Up About Son’s Suicide: Says, ‘I Think Craig Was Lonely’ https://t.co/n11lMGmMp7 pic.twitter.com/6R6GC8SyBK
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"I have no idea what pulled him down, except something that followed him with loneliness. I think it was something with being alone. But when I think that, why didn’t he call the new girlfriend that gave him the lift?" she continued. "He was an introverted person, he was very shy, so I didn’t know either, except now when I listen back to our last conversations, I notice a change. The last few times we talked, the conversations were different, and I didn’t know that until after the suicide," she added.
A spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner spoke to People and confirmed that Craig was found dead at his Studio City home in California and had died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Tina was only 18-years-old when she gave birth to her son Craig after she had a whirlwind romance with saxophonist Raymond Hill who performed with Ike Turner's band 'King of Rhythm'.
Craig was adopted by Ike when he married Tina in the year 1962. Tina said, "Death is not a problem for me, I really don’t mind leaving," referring to a mild stroke that she had in the year 2013 which was followed by a cancer diagnosis and kidney failure. In her yet-to-be-released memoir 'My Love Story', Tina shares how finding love with her second husband Erwin Bach had saved her life given he donated his own kidney for a life-saving kidney transplant which she needed to have.
"I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my life. I’m happier than I ever thought that life would become for me. Most of my hardships came while I was young and growing up. And in the last days, when people normally suffer from old age and sickness, my happiness came. I’m really thoroughly happy," Tina shared.