Tina Turner was an American pop sensation and actress, known for her distinctive, raspy singing style and all out stage performances. She was born on November 26, 1939 in Tennessee to a poor farming family. When her parents split, Tina and her sister lived with their grandmother until her death in the early 1950s. Tina then moved to St. Louis, Missouri to live with her mother. She became involved in the area’s music scene, and frequented a club called “Club Manhattan” where she met her future husband Ike Turner. Ike was the singer of a band called “Kings of Rhythm” which regularly performed at the club. Tina began to perform with the band and soon became a major attraction in their act. In 1960, she sang the lead on one of their songs called “A Fool in Love”. This track was sent to a radio station in New York where it became a huge success.

The group capitalized on their success and started touring. They called themselves “The Ike and Tina Turner Review” and released a quick succession of singles the very next year such as “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine,” “Poor Fool” and “Tra La La La La”. The couple were married in 1962 and had a son named Ronnie, along with one of Tina’s children and two of Ike’s children from previous relationships. In 1966, they recorded the hit album “River Deep, Mountain High” with the famous producer Phil Spector. It wasn’t very popular in the U.S. but immensely well received in Europe. In 1969, they performed on a Rolling Stones tour gaining still more popularity and fans. They kept churning out one hit after the other such as “Proud Mary” and “Nutbush City Limits”.

In 1975, Tina made her movie debut with Ken Russell’s film “Tommy” in which she played a drug addict. Despite the duo’s success, as well as Tina’s own personal success, their marriage was falling apart. Ike had increasingly taken to drug and alcohol use to keep himself going and he often cheated on and physically abused Tina. The couple separated in 1976 and divorced in 1978. Tina was broke and at her wits end to care for her