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- Tina Turner is one of the biggest names in rock and pop music.
- She had two sons Craig and Ronnie with her exes Raymond Hill and Ike Turner, respectively.
- She adopted two of Ike Turner’s sons from prior relationships.
- Her son Ronnie reportedly died on December 8.
Tina Turner’s youngest son Ronnie Turner reportedly died on Thursday, December 8, after paramedics were called to treat him in San Fernando Valley, California as he had trouble breathing and later stopped breathing, according to TMZ. He was 62. It’s not clear what medical conditions he had, but it’s reported that he had previously been diagnosed with cancer.
Tina, 82, is one of the most influential voices in rock and pop music. Tina’s career has lasted over 60 years. After she initially got recognition in the 1960’s, she embarked on a solo career in the late 70s, and her songs (like “What’s Love Got To Do With It” and “Proud Mary”) have become classics, celebrated across generations. The now 82-year-old singer’s life has been well-documented, including her allegedly abusive relationship with Ike Turner, whom she also performed with.
She had one son when she was just 18, and another during her relationship with Ike. While married to Ike, she also adopted his two sons from past relationships and cared for them even after the split. In 1986, she started a relationship with German music executive Erwin Bach, and the two tied the knot over 20 years after meeting in July 2013. Her sons’ father Ike died in 2007 at age 76. Find out more about all four of Tina Turner’s kids here.
Craig Raymond Turner
Tina had her first son Craig Raymond when she was only 18-years-old. Craig’s father was Raymond Hill, who played saxophone in Ike’s band, Kings of Rhythm. Craig mostly avoided the spotlight during his life, and he worked as a real estate professional. Sadly, Craig died by suicide in July 2018 in his Studio City, California home at age 59.
Tina opened up about her son’s death in a June 2019 interview with CBS This Morning. She expressed that she felt like her son was at peace. “I think Craig was lonely, that’s what I think really got him more than anything else,” she said at the time. ”I have pictures all around of him smiling, and I think I’m sensing that he’s in a good place. I really do.” The singer held a ceremony to scatter her late son’s ashes on July 19, 2018, as she revealed in a tweet. “My saddest moment as a mother,” she wrote. “I said my final goodbye to my son, Craig Raymond Turner, when I gathered with family and friends to scatter his ashes off the coast of California. He was fifty-nine when he died so tragically, but he will always be my baby.”
Ronnie Renelle Turner
Tina gave birth to her younger son Ronald “Ronnie” Renelle in October 1960. Ronnie was musical like his mom and dad. He acted alongside his mama in the 1993 movie What’s Love Got To Do With It as a member of The Revue, via IMDb. Ronnie also performed with his parents. Ronnie’s half-brother Ike, Jr. revealed that he was married to the singer Afida Turner in an interview with DailyMail in 2018. His half-brother said he spoke to Ronnie “periodically.”
Ronnie was reported to have died on December 8, 2022. His wife shared a statement mourning his passing on her Instagram. “My God, Ronnie Turner, a true angel, huge soul, highly spiritual, my husband, my best friend, my baby,” she wrote.
Ike Turner Jr.
Ike Turner had six children, but Tina only adopted two of his sons. The two sons she adopted were from his longterm relationship with Lorraine Taylor. His oldest son Ike Turner, Jr., 63, was born in 1958. Ike, Jr. followed in his dad and adopted mom’s footsteps and began a career in the music industry. He won a Grammy in 2006 for producing his father’s album Risin’ With The Blues in the Traditional Blues Album category. Ike, Jr. also reunited with one of his father’s old bandmates Randi Love in 2017 and toured with her, according to the Oklahoma Eagle. Randi was a member of the Ike Turner Revue as an “Ikette.” Randi released a single with Ike, Jr. in 2018 called “Freaky” under the name Sweet Randi Love & Love Thang Band.
Ike claimed that he’d been estranged from his mother for nearly two decades in a 2018 interview with DailyMail. “Tina raised me from the age of two. She’s the only mother I’ve ever known,” he said. “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.”
Michael Turner
Ike’s younger son from his relationship with Lorraine was Michael, 61, born in 1960. Of Tina’s four children, the least is known about Michael. While Michael has kept out of the spotlight, it was revealed that he as well as his brothers Ike and Ronnie were “devastated” that they were mostly left out of the 2021 HBOMax documentary Tina, according to a source who spoke to Fox News.
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