Tina Turner: An Influence That Transcends Music
It is always a sad moment when the music world loses one of its greats. For music fans across the world, the news of Tina Turner’s passing brought on an abundance of tributes and stories shared from folks, not only in the world of music, but throughout all walks of life and industries. When a singer as iconic and beloved as Tina Turner leaves this world, it is always nice to see everyone share their experience with her music and the impact she made on their lives.
For me, one of my favorite parts about listening and discovering music is learning about different singers’ influences and who helped shape the artists we have today. When an artist has the ability to influence many others throughout generations, it keeps their talent and spirit alive and is the best way to honor and remember those whose music brought us so much joy. In the case of Tina Turner’s influence, it expands across genres and walks of life in more ways than you can imagine.
With Tina Turner often being referred to as “The Queen of Rock n’ Roll”, it is no surprise that she would be sighted as a major influence for many women in music, especially black women. Tina’s music and her presence in the world of rock and roll not only influenced future rock and roll singers to come, but also influenced those who were rocking right along next to her. But her musical influence doesn’t stop with just rock and roll, she was able to influence artists across all genres such as blues, R&B, soul, and even country music. Singers like Janis Joplin, Janet Jackson, Rihanna, Lady Gaga, and Beyoncé have credited Tina as a major influence on their music, and those names are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to artists she influenced. However, her vast influence doesn’t end with just inspiring people to pursue music, her influence spans across many areas.
Aside from her musical talent, Tina Turner was also known for her electric stage presence and choice of costumes when performing. Artists like Mick Jagger and David Bowie have credited Tina with helping influence their stage presence and choice of clothing when performing. Tina Turner often worked with designer Bob Mackie and the outfits him and her would select for her performances would sometimes become as iconic as her music. Most notably, the red and orange flame dress she wore along with Cher on the Sonny & Cher Show. What made these outfits so dazzling was not only the use of fun sequins and patterns, but in the way they accentuated and helped show off Tina’s body. Many other performers would claim that her stage style made them also want to be more daring with their costumes. Beyoncé has stated what an influence Tina’s costumes have had on her own performance attire and she even wore a recreation of the Mackie flame dress for a Tina Turner tribute. But the fashion influence doesn’t end with other performers. Celebrities like Raquel Welch have even said to had their style influenced by Tina and Oprah Winfrey has given Tina credit for influencing some of her own hair style choices. But Tina Turner’s influence doesn’t stop there!
Along with her voice, Tina Turner was also well known for her amazing legs, but she didn’t start appreciating them until after her divorce from Ike Turner. Once she was free from her relationship with Ike and was working with Bob Mackie, Tina began wearing outfits that would show off her legs and people went wild for them. Tina had said that she never really felt too confident in her body when she was younger and was surprised to find out so many people were obsessed with her legs. With long legs that featured a muscular look to them, Tina helped women feel confident in their bodies by seeing how you don’t have to look like a super model to be seen as sexy. She helped women realize that appearing strong and muscular was sexy too and to show off your legs and move your body regardless of what you may think of yourself. In a way, she influenced women across the world and of all ages to embrace their bodies. Again, her influence still doesn’t end there!
Lastly, another area of influence Tina Turner had is in regards to her infamous relationship with Ike Turner. As many people know, the relationship between Ike and Tina Turner was not healthy and experienced large amounts of abuse. Without going into all of the details, after many years of fear and pain, Tina was able to leave her relationship with Ike and free herself from the abuse. Following the end of her relationship with Ike, Tina and her career flourished. Because of her ability to leave that abusive situation with Ike and end up thriving, Tina became a huge influence to women suffering from an abusive relationship, as well as those who had already left their abusive relationships. Tina was a survivor and provided inspiration for so many individuals who found themselves in similar situations.
With a career like Tina Turner’s, it is almost impossible to list all of the ways and individuals she influenced. It is obvious that she would be such a large influence to those in the world of music, however, that musical influence was able to transcend genres and will continue for generations to come. I find it even more impressive how she was not only able to influence so many musically, but performance wise, fashion wise, body image wise, and even as a survivor of domestic abuse. With so much influence on the world, we will always find bits of Tina Turner and will be reminded by what a remarkable woman she was. Rest in peace, Tina Turner.
