Tina Turner to Become Swiss Citizen

Since 1995, Tina Turner has been living in Switzerland and loving it. She loves it so much, in fact, that the "What's Love Got to Do With It" singer is making it permanent.

The 73-year-old soul singer from Nutbush, Tenn. has taken the first steps towards Swiss citizenship and plans to ultimately give back her U.S. citizenship, according to her rep. Turner, best known for her hits "We Don't Need Another Hero" and "I Don't Wanna Fight," has passed the initial civic tests and interview needed to become a Swiss citizen, leading the local council to grant her Swiss citizenship. She must wait to be approved by the Swiss state before getting her EU passport.

The news comes as a shock considering Turner's all-American rags to riches story. She rose to music stardom with her first husband Ike, whom she divorced in the '70s after years of abuse and a very tumultuous, public relationship. After breaking free, Turner found even more success with her solo career.

Turner moved to the Zurich suburb of Kuesnacht with her German music manager/record executive Erwin Bach, 17 years her junior, in the mid-90s. Her last studio album, Twenty Four Seven, was released in 1999.

"I'm very happy in Switzerland and I feel at home here.... I cannot imagine a better place to live," Turner told German newspaper Blick.