Entertainment
Beyoncé, Mick Jagger and Elton John lead tribute to Tina Turner
Celebrities and fans have paid tribute to Tina Turner, after the death aged 83 of the soul star behind hits like The Best and What’s Love Got to Do With It.
Beyoncé called her the “epitome of passion and power”, and was joined by Sir Mick Jagger and other stars in saluting Turner’s musical legacy.
The late performer was also lauded by Mariah Carey and Oprah Winfrey for overcoming years of domestic abuse.
The Obamas praised her for “singing her truth through joy and pain”.
They were joined by current US President Joe Biden, who noted that Turner had started life as a farmer’s daughter and hailed her “once-in-a-generation talent”. Beyoncé performed with Turner at the 2008 Grammy Awards
The singer, whose death in Switzerland was announced on Wednesday, had suffered a number of health issues in recent years.
US singer Gloria Gaynor said Turner “paved the way for so many women in rock music, black and white”.
Another contemporary, Diana Ross, said she was “shocked” and “saddened” by Turner’s death.
Sir Mick also said he was saddened by the death of his “wonderful friend”.
“She was truly an enormously talented performer and singer,” the Rolling Stones frontman wrote. “She was inspiring, warm, funny and generous. She helped me so much when I was young and I will never forget her.”
Sir Elton John called Turner a “total legend on record and on stage”.
He said: “We have lost one of the word’s most exciting and electric performers… She was untouchable.”
Welsh star Dame Shirley Bassey recalled how she “really gave it her everything and was a fantastic performer”.
Dubbed the Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll, Turner had a voice like a hurricane and the stage presence to match.
Born in Tennessee and raised in the church, Turner basically elbowed her way into rock ‘n’ roll and rose to fame in the 1960s.
When Ike Turner refused to give her an audition, she waited for the intermission in his show, grabbed a drummer’s microphone and let rip.
She sang with the band for the rest of the night, and soon got equal billing with Ike – later marrying her co-star.
They were one of the most watchable, combustible bands on the soul circuit. Many of their hits were covers of other people’s material.
Proud Mary, Get Back, Whole Lotta Love: whatever the material, Turner could make it her own.
She later found her greatest success as a solo artist with hits including What’s Love Got To Do With It, Let’s Stay Together, Steamy Windows, Private Dancer and James Bond theme GoldenEye.
Those chart triumphs came after she divorced Ike in 1978. A number of Wednesday night’s tributes referred to her escape from her husband’s abuse.
The charity Women’s Aid was among those to quote one of Turner’s songs, saying: “She will always be simply the best.”
TV presenter Oprah Winfrey cited Turner’s “courage”, adding: “Her life became a clarion call for triumph.”
In an effusive message, singer Mariah Carey called Turner not only an “incredible performer” but also a “survivor and an inspiration to women everywhere”.
Beyoncé, another younger star who was influenced by Turner, wrote on her website: “My beloved queen. I love you endlessly.
“I am so grateful for your inspiration, and all the ways you have paved the way. You are strength and resilience. You are the epitome of passion and power.
“We are all so fortunate to have witnessed your kindness and beautiful spirit that will forever remain. Thank you for all you have done.”
Singer PP Arnold – who performed alongside Turner – told the BBC that the two women’s relationship had “changed my life” and saved her from an abusive teen marriage.
Numerous other musicians including Janelle Monáe, Dolly Parton, Blondie’s Debbie Harry and Sir Tom Jones were quick to hail the late performer’s achievements.
She won eight Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in 2021 as a solo artist, having earlier been inducted alongside Ike.
Her glittering career also saw her make film appearances.
Fans around the world paid their own respects – with flowers laid on Turner’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles, and candles lit outside her home in Küsnacht, near Zurich.
Bouquets were left outside London’s Aldwych Theatre – the current home of a musical named Tina, about the late singer’s life.
The show’s star Kristina Love addressed the news on stage, recalling the time she met Turner, who had made her “feel comfortable with the mammoth task ahead in playing her”.
The BBC also heard reactions from members of the public outside Washington DC’s National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Turner was the “epitome of resilience and starting again”, said one woman named Marlene.
Ernest Lawrence, a T-shirt seller, said he planned to make a design with Turner on it – explaining that the performer had “one of the most successful legacies in music in my lifetime”.
He hailed the late star as a “great black female” and a “positive image for any woman”, having overcome “hard times” in her personal life.
Iconic Nigerian singer Peter Okoye has responded to allegations made by his twin brother Paul over ownership of a new song “Winning.”
Peter Okoye shared a detailed account of the song’s creation, clarifying his role and collaboration with others, including Ghanaian producer Vampire and songwriter Calypso.
He questioned Paul’s claims, citing their agreed-upon creative process and Paul’s removal of his (Peter’s) vocals from joint songs.
Peter also addressed his temporary break from music, stating he took time to recharge before returning with “Winning.”
He wrote on X: “If you have followed my journey as a solo artiste and even before, you will notice that I give people their due credit where necessary as I am a firm believer in teamwork; I know my strengths, where I need assistance or guidance I am not afraid to ask or work with those who are strong in the areas I am not; this includes the process of creating music, executing concepts and ideas etc. I will always credit people for their contributions to my projects.
“Sometime in June 2022, I stumbled upon a producer based in Ghana named Vampire, and my team and I also personally reached out to him via DM, that I liked his work and was interested in working with him. Before getting him to Lagos, I presented the idea of this producer to my twin brother and our team, getting their buy-in before I got him flight tickets and flew him to Lagos.“
It was when he got into Lagos I asked if he would be open to working on P-SQUARE’s next album project, that the 5 songs I had penned down from my end to be presented to our A&R team for the album project were: JAIYE, WINNING, FIND SOMEBODY, LEGENDARY, and ATTENTION, based on tracks he had produced.
“We started with my own 5 songs that needed to be submitted for PSQUARE’s album, which he produced for me: The idea for WINNING came from one of his beats that I discovered. I came up with the idea of changing the chord progression from the original version to what it is today with my own producer Goldswarm who is the co-producer of the song WINNING.
“I had also engaged a songwriter known as CALYPSO who wrote and composed the song WINNING and sent it to me on the beats through a voice note. And we started working on the song. Mind you, he worked on some other songs that were to make the album as well, so my brother was aware of his input to the production as we were all in the studio during this period.
“Then when my twin brother heard the song WINNING, which we had already created the hook/chorus for, he then wanted to start creating a verse. Our agreed-on process for each song presented by us was: arrange the song, leave a verse for the other person, then we both harmonise the chorus and refrain bits together. He wasn’t supposed to until Calypso and I finished it as part of my own song submission to the LEGENDARY ALBUM.
“After that, we finished and shared verses among ourselves. I do not wish to get into details of why the album didn’t see the light of day till date but it takes a different level of psychosis for one to steal what is theirs already; as since the release of this song, I have been labeled and called all sorts online and they have even gone as far as asking for the song to be taken down on various platforms, to what end?
“It was never part of his 5, now 6 (according to him) songs for submission, yet when he felt I was not interested in making music because I chose my sanity over the constant berating and drama that seemed to come up over creative direction in the group.
“If it were his song, why do I have all the music data including initial conversations and picture/video evidence on the above-mentioned titles/songs? Which of his songs do I have its data in my possession in that case? All because he was hoping for me to quit music. Even when I learnt that he had removed my vocals on songs we did together, suggesting that he sing the entire songs including the ones that he planned to present for the album without my input (a very absurd idea as we both make up the duo not just the one), but we both perform them on stage, I begun to have a rethink of the entire situation. Let me leave this here.
“Maybe because I was not posting anything music-related on my social media page for over 4 months. He believes I have lost interest in music. I took a breather to get my mind and head in the right space and when that was done, my epiphany was WINNING!”.
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Peter Okoye reacts to alleged song ownership by twin brother
