Tina Turner is sadly mourning the loss of her eldest son, Craig Raymond Turner, who has passed away at the age of 59. The cause of death has not been officially confirmed, though TMZ has reported that Craig died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Authorities found him at his Californian home on Tuesday afternoon, where he was tragically pronounced dead at the scene. Tina had Craig when she was 18, to then-boyfriend Raymond Hill – later in life, when she married Ike Turner, he adopted Craig, giving him his last name.
© Photo: Getty ImagesTina was pictured at an event just before Craig's passing
Tina, 78, was pictured out at an event on the day of Craig's passing - just hours before he was found, she attended the Giorgio Armani Prive Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2018-2019 show in Paris. The singer has four children in total – Craig, Ronnie, 57, and Ike's two children from his first marriage, Ike Junior, 59, and Michael, 58, who Tina also adopted when they married.
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Ike and Tina are well known to have had a turbulent relationship, with Tina eventually fleeing the marriage after years of domestic abuse. In 2005, she told Oprah that Craig was "a very emotional kid" who was often witness to the violence. "They saw the black eyes. Ike's children never reacted, but my oldest son, Craig, was a very emotional kid. He'd always look down in sadness," she said.
© Photo: Getty ImagesIke and Tina in 1972
"One day when Ike was fighting me, Craig knocked on the door and said, 'Mother, are you all right?'" she continued. "I thought, 'Oh, please, don't beat me at home.' I didn't want my children to hear. I tried to have meals with the children, talk to them about life. But Ike had no sense of that. He'd always come home late from the studio. It was awful."
