Ugoma Johnson
Known for great songs such as, ‘I say a little prayer’, ‘A change is gonna come’, ‘Think’, ‘You make me feel like a natural woman’ and many more, Aretha Franklin is one name that can never be left unmentioned when it comes to soul music.
Watch ‘You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman’ below:
Aretha started her vocal career as a teenager, singing in her father’s Detroit church. The beautiful songstress overcame the racial and gender barriers which were prevalent in her time, scaling to up to stardom, when she scored her first national chart-topper in 1967 with a searing version of “Respect”.
Aside from being a vocalist and songwriter, Aretha Franklin was also a self-taught piano maestro who never gave up on building herself, as she continued to dish out heart-warming songs till she took her last breath yesterday.
Aretha Franklin died of advanced pancreatic cancer on Thursday morning at the age of 76. Aretha topped the charts in the 60s, emerging as the queen of soul tunes and up until death never gave up her authority.
Read What Fans Are Saying About This Legend #Tribute
America has no royalty. But we do have a chance to earn something more enduring. Born in Memphis and raised in Detroit, Aretha Franklin grew up performing gospel songs in her father’s congregation. For more than six decades since, every time she sang, we were all graced with a glimpse of the divine. Through her compositions and unmatched musicianship, Aretha helped define the American experience. In her voice, we could feel our history, all of it and in every shade—our power and our pain, our darkness and our light, our quest for redemption and our hard-won respect. She helped us feel more connected to each other, more hopeful, more human. And sometimes she helped us just forget about everything else and dance. Aretha may have passed on to a better place, but the gift of her music remains to inspire us all. May the Queen of Soul rest in eternal peace. Michelle and I send our prayers and warmest sympathies to her family and all those moved by her song.
LONG LIVE THE QUEEN??
