Ike Turner Jr., the son of legendary musicians Tina Turner and Ike Turner Sr., has died at the age of 67 due to kidney failure according to a family statement and multiple reports. The Grammy-winning musician and sound engineer is being remembered for his immense talent and the turbulent yet remarkable life he led in the shadow of two of music’s most influential figures.
Tina’s niece, Jacqueline Bullock, confirmed the news, saying, “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of my cousin, Ike Turner, Jr.” She added, “Junior was more than a cousin to me, but rather a brother, as we grew up in the same famed household together.”
Born in 1958 to Ike Turner Sr. and Lorraine Taylor, Ike Jr. was adopted by Tina Turner when he was two years old. “Tina raised me from the age of 2. She’s the only mother I’ve ever known,” Ike Jr. told the Daily Mail in 2018. He recalled growing up largely under the care of housekeepers while his parents toured extensively.
From an early age, Ike Jr. displayed a strong musical instinct. “As the son of Tina and Ike Turner, from an early age, his talents were evident as there wasn’t an instrument he did not want to play,” Bullock noted in her statement to The Post. While he initially favored the drums, his mother encouraged him to focus on the keys. “Tina Turner insisted that he break down his drum kit after each practice. This led him to favor the keys,” Bullock said. Over time, Junior became deeply involved in his father’s music business, helping to run Bolic Sound Studios — the recording facility founded by Ike Turner Sr.
Ike Jr. went on to carve his own career as a sought-after sound engineer and musician. His technical skills and deep understanding of the blues earned him widespread respect in the industry. In 2007, he won a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album for his work on his father’s Risin’ With The Blues. “While he faced the same challenges that many of us have, he would become a sought-after sound engineer, musician, and Grammy winner,” Bullock said.
However, Ike Jr.’s life was far from simple. His relationship with both parents was often strained. In a 2018 interview with the Daily Mail, he revealed that he had not spoken to Tina Turner in more than a decade, citing personal differences and her move abroad. He also spoke openly about the abuse he suffered from his father, who died of a cocaine overdose in 2007.
In May 2023, Ike Jr. was arrested in Texas for possession of crack cocaine and methamphetamine, just weeks before his mother Tina Turner passed away at 83. Despite his struggles, those who knew him remember a man defined by resilience, creativity, and a lifelong love of music.
Part of a musically gifted but often complicated family, Ike Jr. is survived by his siblings Raymond Craig, Michael, Ronnie, and Mia Turner. With the recent losses of his brother Ronnie in 2022 and his mother Tina in 2023, Ike Jr.’s passing marks another poignant chapter in the Turner family’s storied and often turbulent legacy.
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