Oprah Winfrey Wore Her Tina Turner-Inspired Wig at ‘All Times’ (Even to Bed) to Feel Close to Her
The talk show host once revealed the “ultimate groupie” backstory behind her famous hairpiece that channeled her hero and friend, the late Tina Turner
Oprah Winfrey is inspired by Tina Turner in many aspects of her life, including her hairstyle.
The talk show host was a huge fan of the late Queen of Rock ‘n Roll (who died Wednesday at age 83) before forming a close friendship with her.
In a 2011 OWN interview, the media mogul revealed that she created her own Wildest Dreams national tour inspired by Turner’s concert of the same name. “We traveled around the country following Tina Turner mainly so we could go to Tina’s concerts every night in different cities,” she shares. She calls it the story of “the ultimate music group”. But things don’t stop there.
Winfrey also had a wig similar to the superstar’s synonymous ‘do. “I had a wig made so that I could be a part and close to Tina in wigdom,” she admitted.
Winfrey and the faux hair were inseparable. “I wouldn’t take the wig off. I did it for the show, I did it for the next show, I think we did five or six shows around the country,” she continued.
Weekends and bedtime were not excluded from the wig’s rotation, with Winfrey adding that she “started wearing it at all times.”
That was until her longtime partner, Stedman Graham, gave her a bit of a reality check.
Graham told her, “I don’t know when somebody’s gonna tell you that you are not Tina Turner,” Winfrey recalled, remembering him calling her wig obsession a “problem.”
“I think you think you’re Tina Turner and you should really be happy being Oprah Winfrey,” he said, per her retelling.
So that’s when Winfrey said goodbye to her collection – but her affinity for the wigs is still going strong.
“Truth of the matter is I still like my Tina wig. If I had right now I’d put it on. I don’t feel like it was such a terrible thing. Could I have a little happiness here,” she said in her defense.
Winfrey paid tribute to the “Proud Mary” singer following her May 24 death from a “long illness.” As per a statement, Turner died “peacefully” in her home in Küsnacht near Zurich, Switzerland.
An Instagram carousel showed multiple photos of the two stars sharing moments on Winfrey’s former talk show. “She was a role model not only for me but for the world. She encouraged a part of me I didn’t know existed,” Winfrey wrote.
The mogul also commended Turner’s “courage,” adding, “Once she claimed her freedom from years of domestic abuse, her life became a clarion call for triumph.”
Winfrey concluded by noting that the eight-time Grammy winner helped her become a “better woman, a better human, because her life touched mine.”