Tina Turner: ‘I was so tired of singing and dancing’

Singer Tina Turner still has no regrets about retiring from the stage in 2009 – because it was a huge relief not to perform anymore. The 73-year-old Proud Mary singer reveals she had no reservations about walking away from the spotlight, explaining it was a long time coming.
In a new TV interview with pal Oprah Winfrey, she says, “I’ve been working towards that for so long. I worked hard all my life, nobody gave me a thing. When I started to take care of my family, I would say, ‘Aww I wish someone would do that for me,’ and I knew it wouldn’t happen, so I worked and when that happened (I retired) it means I balanced my money. I knew that financially I could do it and when I left there, I put it to rest, I put it to sleep.
“I tried to forget all those stressful moments. Even in the dressing room, when I was… not feeling like going on stage, whenever it is time for me to be Tina, something turned and that’s the professional side. No matter how I felt, how sick I was… I did it because I want to know everybody left that stage having a wonderful time.”
She adds, “I wanted to retire and not worry. I received… a revelation of ‘This is it, I’m going home now’. No one ever knew onstage how tired of singing and dancing I was.”