People all over the world remember Tina Turner as one of music's greats and lament the difficulties in her life that tore her down and resulted in her moving out of the United States. Yet by all accounts, Tina was happy in her later years, making an international move to be with her boyfriend and enjoy her retirement. She and that boyfriend got married and were seemingly quite happy through her later years.
Tina's earlier years, however, were not as enjoyable. After she met Ike Turner, her life changed in many ways, not all of them positive. Ike had an intense amount of control over not just Tina's music, but her livelihood. Tina Turner was a household name, but it turns out she didn't even own the rights to it back in the day.
Tina Turner's Real Name Was Anna Mae Bullock
According to biographies for Tina Turner, her real name was Anna Mae Bullock. Bullock was raised partly by her parents, who split, and later by her maternal grandmother until her grandmother passed away. Bullock grew up in Tennessee without any singing aspiration, working domestic jobs and later becoming a nurse's aide to support herself.
According to various biographies, she was inspired to pursue music after she saw Ike Turner perform.
The would-be singer badgered Turner until he allowed her a chance at the microphone, after which Ike began to help her tone her vocals. A few years later, Anna Mae (her first single was attributed to Little Ann) became Tina Turner, but it wasn't even her idea.
Early in her career, Turner began to flex his control over the young singer, and it started with her stage name.
While fans now know it didn't end well, there were early signs that Ike Turner wouldn't let Anna Mae go without a fight.
Ike Turner Created Tina's Stage Name
Various biographies of Tina Turner tell the same story about her stage name. Anna Mae Bullock became Tina Turner even before she actually married Ike; the stage name went public in 1960, and the two were later married in 1962.
The story goes that at the time, Ike didn't think Anna Mae was a good stage name, and "inspired by" Sheena, Queen of the Jungle, he opted for Tina, which rhymed.
In his book, Takin' back my name, Ike Turner claimed that he trademarked the name Tina Turner. The reason, say third-party sources summing up the book, was reportedly so that Ike could replace Anna Mae if needed.
In a biography of the late singer, Britannica states that Ike "reportedly had the name trademarked so that another singer could perform under the same name if she left the band."
Fortunately for Ike, Tina stayed with the band (and him) until their divorce in 1978, but he didn't exactly keep winning after that.
Who Owns Tina Turner's Stage Name Now?
It's well-known that when Ike Turner passed away in 2007, he wasn't worth much money. Not only did he not have millions to leave behind, but he also didn't leave cash to any of his many ex-wives.
Turner, who claimed he was married over a dozen times, made plenty of money in the industry, yet when Tina finally left him, she had nothing. Fortunately for Tina Turner, she did walk away with something valuable: her name.
It wasn't hers originally, but Tina eventually made it so, not only through her marriage but also her subsequent divorce.
In an interview for her documentary, Tina Turner noted, "The divorce, I got nothing. No money, no house. So I said: I'll just take my name." Perhaps ironically, Ike's memoir was titled Takin' back my name, but clearly, Tina had already made it her own.
She later credited Buddhism with saving her life and her career, but Tina also put in the work to rebuild what she lost when she split from Ike. The ability to keep her stage name, and keep anyone else from taking it on or benefiting from her likeness, is what helped Turner excel in her career without Ike.
By the time Tina passed away in 2023, she was worth an incredible $250 million, some of which will likely be left to her two living children.
Could Someone Else Become Tina Turner Today?
Technically, if Tina Turner was able to maintain the rights to her name, those rights should then pass to whoever inherits her estate. Though much of her wealth is likely to be left to Tina's husband, whom she married in 2013, it's unclear who will have ownership of her name.
In theory, someone else could take up the stage name, or Tina's family or her widower could continue to release music and other materials branded with the moniker. Only time will tell whether the family plans to posthumously release materials tied to Tina Turner's estate, but fans already know her memory will never fade.
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