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Take a look at Tina Turner's life in pictures

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Euronews Culture takes a look at the late superstar's life in photographs after she passed away aged 83

Tina Turner had a decades-long career, travelled the world and became an icon - all from humble beginnings.

Born Anna Mae Bullock on 26 November 1939, she was brought up by her grandmother in Nutbush, Tennessee after her parents split. When her grandmother passed away, 16-year-old Tina moved to St. Louis, Missouri where she began her musical career - and met her future husband, Ike Turner.

Come 1960, the hit single 'A Fool in Love' made her a star. She became the lead singer of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue; Ike changed her name to Tina and their relationship, which had begun platonically, turned up a gear. The pair married in 1962.

Their marriage was tumultuous even before it started - Tina reportedly didn't even know the ceremony was happening until the day itself. Years later, she revealed she had been given little choice in the matter.

"When Ike asked me to marry him, I knew it was for a reason", she told CBS. "I had to say yes, I knew, or it was going to be a fight".

Ike was notoriously abusive towards Tina throughout the union. They remained married for 16 years, but Tina ultimately fled the relationship and was granted a divorce in 1978.

Tina chose not to fight over any of their shared assets, but she did win the rights to her stage name and enjoyed a resurgence in the 1980s, finding more success than ever before.

Known for her boundless energy and raw talent as well as her style, hair and dance skills, she earned four Grammy awards in 1984 on the back of her album 'Private Dancer' and was hailed as one of the biggest and most impressive musical comebacks in history.

Following that success, she spent much of 1985 on tour, playing a staggering 182 shows around the globe.

In the 1990s, Tina was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and embarked on a new tour, which was attended by nearly four million people - breaking the audience record for a European tour previously set by The Rolling Stones.

Her greatest hits compilation 'Simply the Best' sold seven million copies worldwide and, in 2000, she proved she was still an icon at 60 years old, when she performed at the Super Bowl in Atlanta.

From 2008 to 2009, Tina hit the road again with her 50th Anniversary Tour, playing 90 sold-out dates across North America and Europe. The tour marked the end of her performing career, and the legendary singer announced her retirement.

Her public appearances soon became limited. But in 2019, she attended the premiere of the eponymous musical based on her life on Broadway in New York, as well as the launch of the German version of the show in Hamburg. 

Tina died on 24 May 2023 in her adopted home of Küsnacht in Switzerland. Paying tribute, her spokesperson reflected: "With her, the world loses a music legend and a role model".

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