BROWNSVILLE, Tenn. – In the rural Tennessee community where she was raised, a 10-foot statue honoring rock n’ roll legend Tina Turner was revealed on Saturday. Known for her Grammy-winning singing, electrifying performances, and global fame, Turner grew up here before her rise to stardom.
The statue unveiling took place at a park in Brownsville, a small city about an hour’s drive east of Memphis. This town, home to about 9,000 residents, is near Nutbush, where Turner went to school growing up. As a teenager, she attended high school not far from the statue’s location.
The sculpture depicts Turner with her iconic hairstyle, holding a microphone as if performing. Created by sculptor Fred Ajanogha, it aims to capture her dynamic stage presence, her unique way of holding the microphone, and her hair, likened to a “lion’s mane.”
Turner passed away on May 24, 2023, at the age of 83, after battling a long illness at her home in Küsnacht near Zurich. Her acclaimed career includes hit songs like “Nutbush City Limits,” “Proud Mary,” “Private Dancer,” and “We Don’t Need Another Hero,” from “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.” She also appeared in films such as “Tommy” and “Last Action Hero.”
During the 1960s and ’70s, Turner performed alongside her then-husband Ike Turner, delivering hit records and captivating live performances. Despite her troubled marriage, she made a triumphant return in her middle years with the 1984 chart-topper “What’s Love Got To Do With It.”
Her admirers ranged from Mick Jagger to Beyoncé to Mariah Carey, and she was known as the the “Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll.”
The statue unveiling coincided with the 10th-annual Tina Turner Heritage Days, celebrating her early years in rural Tennessee before her teenage departure. Sculpted in clay and cast in bronze, the statue took approximately a year to complete.
Karen Cook said she traveled from Georgia to attend the event with her friend, a cousin of Turner’s, to honor the legendary performer.
“She’s a great artist, I love her music,” said Cook, 59. “My mom listened to her a lot. It’s a big deal and a great thing for the community to have Tina Turner in her small town.”
About 50 donors gave money for the statue, including Ford Motor Co., which donated $150,000. Ford is building an electric truck factory in nearby Stanton.
The statue stands near a museum honoring Turner at the the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center in Brownsville. The museum opened in 2014 inside the renovated Flagg Grove School, a one-room building where Turner attended classes in Nutbush. The school closed in the 1960s and was used as a barn before the dilapidated building was moved by tractor-trailer from Nutbush to Brownsville.
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