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"Some Will Hear: Tina Turner, African American Buddhist Teacher"

2022
Author(s):
Ralph H. Craig III
Publisher
Indiana Unversity Press
Some Will Hear: Tina Turner, African American Buddhist Teacher cover

This article follows Tina Turner’s evolution from a Buddhist practitioner who
talks about her practice and beliefs in the midst of promoting her work as
a mainstream artist to a lay (Black) Buddhist teacher on the 2009 album
Beyond (Gold Edition): Buddhist and Christian Prayers. Specifically, I ana-
lyze the creation, content, and promotion of the album, placing Turner’s con-
tributions in the context of her conversion to Soka Gakkai Nichiren Buddhism
and the history of the American branch of Soka Gakkai International. With
Beyond, Turner consciously takes on the role of authoritative Buddhist teacher
by creating a sonic liturgy. Turner’s example challenges scholars working in
American Buddhism to pay closer attention to the unique aspects of Black
Buddhist teaching and practice. Turner’s shift also further encourages scholars
of African American religious history to nuance their understanding of “the
Black Church” as the primary location of African American religious practice,
affiliation, or authority.