Tina musical star Adrienne Warren pays tribute to ‘icon’ and ‘mentor’ Tina Turner: ‘I love you’

Adrienne Warren is remembering her lifelong inspiration and friend Tina Turner.

The actress, who won a Tony award for portraying Turner in the Broadway musical about her, paid tribute to the late singer, who died at 83 this week, with a collection of video clips and snapshots on social media Thursday.

“Today we lost our Queen of Rock & Roll, an inspiration, an icon. Today I lost a teacher and a mentor,” Warren captioned her post. “Rest, my friend. I love you, Anna Mae Bullock. Thank you.”

LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 17: Cast member Adrienne Warren (L) and Tina Turner bow at the curtain call during the press night performance of "Tina: The Tina Turner Musical" at the Aldwych Theatre on April 17, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images)

LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 17: Cast member Adrienne Warren (L) and Tina Turner bow at the curtain call during the press night performance of “Tina: The Tina Turner Musical” at the Aldwych Theatre on April 17, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images)

David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Adrienne Warren and Tina Turner

In the first clip, Warren and Turner are shown meeting after Warren is cast in Tina: The Tina Turner Musical. “I wanted to first say ‘thank you’ to you because, if it weren’t for you, I would’ve never become a performer,” Warren tells Turner while sitting next to her on a couch. “I shook my hips before I could tie my shoes because of Tina Turner. I am your fan first and, because of that, I consider it such a responsibility.”

“It is,” Turner agreed. “It’s a new life-form for Tina — without me — and everyone said, ‘Who is going to be you, girl, ’cause she’s got a lotta shoes to fill,’ and I’m really very happy that we found you.”

The pair then stand up and Turner begins to teach Warren how to do her signature dance move, the pony, before falling back down onto the couch from laughing so hard. Other compiled footage shows Warren and Turner walking on stage together; Warren preparing to record the audiobook for Turner’s 2020 memoir, Happiness Becomes You; and a photo of them laughing together.

Speaking with EW in 2019, Warren shared her admiration for Turner and recalled anxiously awaiting her reaction after the “Proud Mary” singer attended an early performance of the musical.

“I didn’t hear from her for a few days. And then on Easter Sunday [laughs], I happened to be at my director’s house and she called and said, ‘All right, Adrienne, I’m ready to talk now,'” Warren recalled at the time. “And in that conversation, she approved my performance. She wasn’t able to speak to me face-to-face when she saw it because she wasn’t ready yet. And she said some things I will never forget that I will keep near and dear to my heart.”

She added, “I think the more that all of us began to spend time with Tina and learned more about her, the more we started to care for her as a woman that we know and love. And I think when you start really caring, that’s when you become that emotionally invested in your work. I care so deeply about this piece… because I care so deeply about this woman. And this is her legacy, and she has given us her torch, so let’s do it right because she deserves that.”

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