40 Celebrities We Need To Keep Safe From 2016

MUNICH, GERMANY – OCTOBER 03: Tina Turner during Oktoberfest at Schuetzenzelt/Theresienwiese on October 3, 2014 in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Gisela Schober/Getty Images)

16. Tina Turner

I am not ready to lose Tina Turner. True, she hasn’t put out a proper album in a while, and at 76, it would be hard to spend too much time cursing the heavens should her time come. Still, I’m not ready. She’s been trucking at 100 miles per hour for decades, and it would feel wrong for her to just stop.

In many ways, Turner is a self-made creation. She started performing with husband Ike Turner in the early ‘60s, and found success with R&B-pop songs like “A Fool in Love” and “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine.” Ike was abusive, and in the late ‘70s, she finally left him for good.

Now in her 40s, Turner had to rebuild her career from scratch. She didn’t just succeed–she became more popular than ever before. Switching from R&B to rock and roll, she went to the top of the charts with songs like “Private Dancer” and “What’s Love Got to Do with It.” The style was different, but her soulful, scratchy voice remained consistent, as did her reputation for crackling live performances. Turner’s voice is more than evocative enough to carry a recording, but she’s one of those performers you need to see live to really appreciate, with her bumping and kicking and strutting around the stage like she owns it.

She hasn’t dimmed with age. She’s contributed tracks to a group called Beyond, still gives the occasional performance, and at 73, became the oldest woman to grace the cover of Vogue. And she recently became a Swiss citizen, because why not? She’s got stuff left to give, and I want her to stick around long enough to give it.

-Dan

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