Death of Tina Turner: Philippe Manœuvre salutes an "incredible performer" who "exploded the crowds"

Romain Rouillard (interview by Lucie de Perthuis) / Photo credit: VOTAVA / IMAGNO / APA-PICTUREDESK VIA AFP 22:15 p.m., May 24, 2023

The sky has just fallen on the heads of rock 'n' roll lovers. A true icon of the genre, American singer Tina Turner died on Wednesday at the age of 83 after a long illness. The announcement fell shortly after 20:30 French time via a statement published by one of its agents. She passed away peacefully at her home in Küsnacht, near Zürich, Switzerland. A country where she had taken up residence in the late 70s to escape the violence of her mentor and ex-husband, guitarist Ike Turner. At the microphone of Europe 1, Philippe Manoeuvre, journalist specializing in rock, retraced the extraordinary career of the singer at the eight Grammy Awards.

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"I'm touched of course. Tina Turner, nicknamed the tigress, the lioness...", he recalls. For the former editor-in-chief of Rock & Folk magazine, Tina Turner, born as Anna Mae Bullock, was above all an "incredible performer" and a "colossal personality". A status of global star that the rocker builds in Europe after an early career in her native country to the sound of rhythm'n'blues. "She did some incredible touring and she did a solo album that put her back at the center of the game, dare I say. With the help of many rock people like the Rolling Stones, the Dire Straits, Jeff Beck etc ...", says Philippe Manoeuvre.

"On stage, she was depositing"

Emancipated from her former mentor, Tina Turner gradually builds her legend. Concert after concert, his glittering performances give him an aura throughout the world. "She was also a dancer and she was gymnastic. On stage, she was depositing and really managing to amaze the crowds with incredible titles." Among these hits, already entered into posterity, What's Love Got to Do with It and (Simply) The Best will remain his greatest hits. "She was able to make rock that made people dance. And on stage, with her stiletto heels and sparkling little dresses, she exploded the crowds," recalls Philippe Manoeuvre.

During her career, Tina Turner has also appeared in several feature films. And it was during a shoot in Australia for the film Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome that Philippe Manœuvre got to know the queen of rock'n'roll personally. "I discovered an exuberant, very sensitive personality," he says. Hailing a "true professional", the journalist concludes by evoking the "incredible dynamism" of the one who has "made millions of people fantasize".