Justine Riddoch: Simply the Best

There comes a moment during every Totally Tina performance when something rather remarkable happens.

You stop comparing.

You stop looking for the differences.

You stop thinking, “She sounds like Tina Turner.”

Instead, you simply become caught up in the music.

That’s quite an achievement.

Because Tina Turner wasn’t simply a singer.

She was a force of nature.

Trying to recreate someone like that could easily become little more than impersonation.

Justine Riddoch has spent the last sixteen years proving there’s a world of difference between imitation and celebration.

I first met Justine many years ago at the Buz Awards.

Long before Totally Tina filled theatres around the country, she had already announced herself as a formidable performer by winning Stars in Their Eyes as Anastacia.

Even then, there was something impossible to ignore.

Commitment.

Some performers sing songs.

Justine inhabits them.

When people first suggested she should perform as Tina Turner, she admits she wasn’t entirely convinced.

“I was flattered,” she smiles, “but I was hesitant.”

At the time, her Anastacia tribute was thriving.

Changing direction meant taking a considerable risk.

Looking back now, it was clearly the right decision.

Sixteen years later, Totally Tina has become one of the most respected tribute productions in the country, collecting multiple National Tribute Music Awards along the way, including the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award.

Awards are wonderful.

But I suspect they aren’t what keeps audiences coming back.

Watching Justine perform, it’s obvious this was never about copying someone else’s career.

It’s about honouring it.

She has spent countless hours studying Tina.

Not simply the voice.

The movement.

The energy.

The resilience.

The story.

“It’s never just about hitting the notes,” she tells me. “It’s about capturing her spirit.”

That one sentence explains everything.

The best tribute acts don’t ask an audience to believe they’re watching the original.

They invite them to remember why they fell in love with the original in the first place.

Today’s production bears little resemblance to those early performances.

A superb live band.

Exceptional dancers.

A show packed with energy from beginning to end.

Of course, the audience expects Simply the Best and Proud Mary, but Justine clearly enjoys finding fresh ways to surprise them.

This year’s additions include Tina’s powerful interpretations of the Rolling Stones classics Jumping Jack Flash and Honky Tonk Woman.

“The reaction has been incredible,” she says.

I can well believe it.

Off stage, however, she’s remarkably understated.

Despite being recognised as one of the world’s most successful Tina Turner tribute artists, she speaks far more readily about her musicians, dancers and crew than she does about herself.

That tells you something.

No great show is created by one person.

Performing across Europe has brought countless memorable moments, but one stands out above all the others.

Switzerland.

Tina’s adopted home.

Playing her music there carried a significance that went far beyond another date on the tour schedule.

It felt personal.

As we chatted, I found myself thinking back to that young performer I first met all those years ago.

The enthusiasm hasn’t changed.

Neither has the work ethic.

Only the stages have become bigger.

There’s a misconception that tribute artists have an easier job because the songs already exist.

I suspect the opposite is true.

The audience arrives carrying memories.

Expectations.

Emotions attached to every lyric.

Meeting those expectations night after night takes remarkable dedication.

Justine understands that responsibility.

Perhaps that’s why Totally Tina has endured for so long.

The show never feels like a karaoke performance dressed in sequins.

It feels like a thank you.

A heartfelt celebration of one of the greatest performers the music industry has ever known.

And isn’t that what the finest tribute acts really do?

They don’t replace the original.

They remind us why we loved them in the first place.

For a couple of hours, the music lives again.

The memories return.

And somewhere in the audience, someone who never had the chance to see Tina Turner herself discovers exactly why she became a legend.

That’s a pretty special gift to be able to give.