British singer Bonnie Tyler has passed away at the age of 75. The Welsh artist became famous primarily for her raspy voice and the 1980s worldwide hit "Total Eclipse of the Heart". As the "BBC" reports, she had already been placed in a medically induced coma in Portugal in May following emergency intestinal surgery. Last month, her spokesperson announced that Tyler had awakened from the coma but remained "very ill" and was still in intensive care.
From a Row House to the World Stage
She was born Gaynor Hopkins in a row house in Neath, Wales, where her love of music began early. As a child, she would carry her records in bags to her aunt's house to listen to them there with her cousins. She was drawn to rock music and wanted to play in a band.
For seven years, she performed in rugby clubs and working men's clubs before getting the chance to make a record. She later said that at first, she didn't have big plans to actually make records. It was talent scout Roger Bell who got the ball rolling. He knew producers who were looking for a singer and recommended the young Welsh woman to them. In London, she recorded one of her first demo recordings, "Lost in France", and shortly afterward appeared on stage at "Top of the Pops". The title was released as a single in 1977.
How Sherene Davies Became Bonnie Tyler
She owes her stage name to a newspaper. Initially, she performed as Sherene Davies, but when she signed with RCA, Elvis Presley's record label, they advised her to change it. So she took a sheet of paper, wrote down all the first names she encountered on one list, all the last names on another, and put together Bonnie Tyler from them.
The turning point of her career came five years after "Lost in France" with a song that songwriter Jim Steinman played for her on the piano in New York. "Oh my God, this song is incredible", she thought at the time. She initially considered it impossible that the ballad would ever be played on the radio: the original version of "Total Eclipse of the Heart" lasted eight minutes. A four-minute radio version then conquered the world, staying at the top of the British charts for two weeks and at the top of the US charts for four weeks.
A Hit That Never Faded
The success continues to this day. This year, "Total Eclipse of the Heart" surpassed the one billion streams mark on Spotify, and the video was viewed more than 1.3 billion times on YouTube. After 43 years, the song had never become boring to her, Tyler emphasized.
She certainly didn't lack other hits. "Holding Out for a Hero", "It's a Heartache", "Together", and "If You Were a Woman (And I Was a Man)" are among her best-known songs. She was nominated three times for a Grammy as best female singer. In 2013, she represented the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest.
Late Recognition and a New Song
In 2022, her name appeared on the Queen's final birthday honors list, and a year later Prince William (44) presented her with the MBE order for her services to music. She said in 2023 that she had grown up in a row house and would never have expected such an honor. That same year, her autobiography "Straight from the Heart" was published.
Most recently, she released a new single, "Yes I Can", a song about inner strength and believing in oneself.
Private Life Between Portugal and Wales
According to reports, she and her husband Robert Sullivan owned 22 houses around the globe; the two spent most of their time in Portugal and in Mumbles near Swansea, Wales. The couple had no children. Tyler suffered a miscarriage at 40. She once said that she had always loved children, but her career had always gotten in the way.
