Former Rainbow singer Joe Lynn Turner was interviewed at a press conference in Russian-annexed Crimea, where he was performing. At the conference, the singer praised Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka and said he has “no love anymore for the United States.” Read select quotes from the conference below as transcribed by Blabbermouth.net.
Turner said he that he might settle down in another country ruled by an authoritarian leader — Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka. He said he was considering moving to Belarus “if Lukashenka lets me in.”
“I just might apply for citizenship, because I have no — truth be told — I have no love anymore for the United States, really,” Joe said. “I don’t like the administrations, I don’t like what’s going on, I don’t like the lies to the people… I don’t like anything. It’s not the country… my father’s country. When there was opportunity, when there was truth — some truth anyway — I think…”
He continued, “You might see this. This is a pin of Putin. [points to his pin] Why? Why? I don’t wear this to placate you. The word [placate] means to impress you. I don’t. I wear it, because I believe it.
I’ve listened to every leader in the world. The only one who’s telling the truth is Putin. So I think there’s a very good question for me personally, because, as I have said already, there’s a house being built in Belarus and perhaps an apartment in Moscow. I’m thinking about it. I have some very, very important friends there who I love very much, and I think I have found a new life and a new home. And that is ‘pravda’ [Russian word for ‘truth’]; that is the truth.”
Turner is married to Maya Kozyreva, a lawyer from Minsk, the capital of Belarus. “She is my greatest asset in life. She’s my angel,” he told Guitar World in 2012.
A video from the press conference appears below.
34 Responses
another douche bag rich a–hole,good go,we dont need you here,go over there give them 3/4 of your pay,see how far you would have gotten living there.you would be working in some sweat shop there and standing in line for toilet paper you a–hole.i love how when these folks get money they all of a sudden become worldly smart and have all these opinions.they should revoke his passport,and accommodate him,bye bye a–hole.
Making these bold statements may get his name in the papers, and ingratiate him to some of these European dictatorships, but a portion of the audiences back in the USA will not let him forget about this, when he returns to play clubs in NJ. If he was born in the Ukraine, he would probably be a turnip farmer right now. I actually liked some of his work with Rainbow, but his trademark wig and pout are getting tired, and these comments aren’t helping, and probably ruled him out for Blackmore’s return.
Everything he said is true.
Craig, I saw Alice & Motley last week in BKLYN, and you’re right, Alice & his band were great! And Motley? Well, the Crue was the Crue. They’re not the greatest musicians in the world, although Mick Mars is a damn good guitarist! Tommy & Nikki have their moments, and Vince? Now you know why the Crue is “Louder Than Hell” in concert. But hey, it’s Motley FN’ Crue, what you see is what you get, a good buzz, and a damn good time! 🙂
Nice to see Joe Lynn Turner’s name in print again. At least now we know he’s still alive!