The legendary Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin has died on
August 16 2018 at the age of 76. She had been suffering from pancreatic
cancer.
Aretha was born on March 25,
1942 in Memphis, TN to the Reverend C. L. Franklin. Almost from the
beginning, she sang and played the piano in her father’s church choir at New
Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, MI. She developed into a fantastic gospel
singer, sometimes traveling on the road with Sam Cooke and the Soul Stirrers.
In the early 1960s she recorded standards, jazz, blues, doo-wop, and rhythm and
blues.
In 1960 at the age of 18, Aretha
began singing R&B music. She signed a contract with Atlantic Records and
from the beginning of her reign in the 1960s, she recorded a number of hits,
such as “I Never Loved a Man,” “Do Right Woman, Do Right Man,” and the ever
popular “Respect,” all from 1967. Aretha’s special voice and delivery were a
part of the sound track of my childhood.
Aretha won a total of 18 Grammy
Awards, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, becoming the
first female inductee. Throughout her career, she was awarded numerous honors,
including a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1979 and the Presidential
Medal of Freedom in 2005. She is listed on the Rolling Stones 100 greatest
artists of all time. In 2014, an asteroid was named in her honor. In 2017, a
street in Detroit was renamed Aretha Franklin Way. She had a total of 20 number
one hits during her lifetime.
Queen Aretha performed before presidents
and queens and Super Bowl audiences, never failing to impress. Over the course
of her decades long career, Aretha sold more than 75 million records worldwide.
All hail the Queen! She is already
missed.
Aretha
Louise Franklin [03/25/1942 – 08/16/2018]
©
08/16/2018
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