Kamala Harris is paying tribute to the “Queen of Rock & Roll.”
Nearly a month after Tina Turner died at the age of 83, the U.S. vice president opened up to Rolling Stone about the singer’s influence on her own life and that of future generations.
Harris, 58, began her tribute by recounting how her mother would often play “Proud Mary” on repeat as she was growing up in Oakland, Calif., which prompted her to dance around her family’s living room and sing “at the top of my lungs.”
She went on to note that Turner’s music “spoke a universal language” — one that she and millions of others could “understand and relate to.”
“So many of [Turner’s] songs were rooted in freedom, individuality, and self-determination — at a time when such concepts felt off-limits to Black female artists,” Harris wrote in her op-ed, before going on to list the singer’s various accolades including her double Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction and Grammy wins in pop, rock, and R&B.
Harris also focused a large part of the op-ed on who Turner was as a person and how she used her voice to carry special messages of empowerment.
“With her very presence representing an affront to the status quo, she stood tall and proud, demonstrating to the world that rock stars could look like her, too, and reminding us all the power of living as our true, authentic selves,” Harris said.
Harris noted the “What’s Love Got To Do With It” singer “inspired” many others by tackling obstacles like racism, sexism, and domestic violence “head-on with courage and conviction” amid her success.
“Those experiences became fuel for the journeys of so many others — listeners whom she inspired with her songs of struggle and overcoming,” she explained to Rolling Stone.
“And today, her life remains a testament to all those who believe in what can be, unburdened by what has been,” she added.
Harris concluded her post by repeating a quote her mother told her: “Kamala, you may be the first to do many things. Make sure you are not the last.”
She wrote that Turner did just that and in the process paved the way for the next generation through her mentorship of younger artists and affecting change through her music.
“The joy she shared with us will live on in her music for as long as we continue to sing and dance along to it,” Harris wrote.