Starfile: Birthdays – Tina Turner

Happy Birthday weekend to the lady who reinvented herself by taming the Rock and Roll savage beast. This truly remarkable woman helped pave the way for many of the talented singers that you enjoy hearing today: Fellow Capitol Records artist Katy Perry, Mariah Carey, Beyonce, Rihanna and even Lady Gaga. We’re talking about the Queen of Rock & Roll music herself, the legendary Tina Turner.

The Sagittarian songstress turns 77 on  November 26th. Tina’s music has inspired and uplifted a generation and it is a lasting tribute to practicing faith, optimism and the perseverance to make it through incredible adversity.

My grandmother Mary had a special connection to Tina’s life story and her music. She’d often speak of the time she went to see the Ike and Tina Turner Revue at the Golden Gate Theater in East L.A. My grandmother could relate to Tina because like many women of their era, she was also a battered wife who felt powerless at the hands of a domineering husband.

I remember as a kid watching the video to “What’s Love Got to Do With It” and my grandmother would just light up at the sound of Tina’s voice and at the sight of her punk-rocker 1980’s hairstyle and jean jacket over a super-sleek black dress. As Tina walked along a chain link fence doling out the song lyrics, I’d notice a tear in my grandmother’s eyes. Tina Turner is a living legend and an inspiration as a symbol not just of sex, but of love, strength and unwavering devotion to her incredible sense of artistry and talent for music.

Actually, “What’s Love Got to Do with It” is a very Sagittarius-inspired song. It’s about our biological need for mating and the emotions that become intertwined. When is lust just lust and love just love and how do we strike a fine balance from what it is we feel we desire and what it is that we know we need?