Aretha Franklin
1942 - 2018
As we approach the late Aretha Franklin's birthday on March 25th, I'd also like to make this post in honor of her iconic career and oh-so-inspiring voice that has touched people across the world.
Aretha Franklin was born March 25th, 1942 in Memphis, Tennessee to Baptist Preacher Reverend Clarence La Vaughan Franklin and Barbara Siggers Franklin, a gospel singer. After her mothers passing at the age of ten years old, Aretha's father moved the family from the "Home of the Blues" to the "Motown Sound" (Detroit, MI) where he became a distinguished preacher across the country.
Aretha was born with her musical talent, and it was apparent from the very beginning. As a self-taught child prodigy, Aretha's skills on the piano and powerful voice granted her the opportunity to perform at the church, and record her first album at the age of fourteen years old. Aretha's path to stardom began, and she never looked back.
Aretha has received offers and worked with many big-name record labels like RCA, Motown, Columbia, and Atlantic Records over her career. Her pure talent grew over the years affording her the chance to work with some of the top artists in the 20th and 21st-century music industry like Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones, Otis Redding and more.
Her experiences through the music industry awarded her 18 Grammy's and counting, sold millions of copies, and performed in some of the most publicized events. In 2014, after being active in the music industry for over 50 years, Aretha Franklin released an album named "Aretha Franklin Sings the Great Diva Classics." It reached No. 13 on the pop charts and No. 3 on the R&B charts.
She decided to retire her music career in 2017 and plan for life after such a memorable journey. In 2018, Aretha chose Jennifer Hudson to play her in a biopic named Respect which is set to release soon. Sadly, later that year, on August 16, 2018, Aretha Franklin had become extremely sick and passed away from pancreatic cancer. Check out just a small taste of her music below, and remember how influential and special we are to listen to such a natural talent.
