Swazi Observer

FULL STORY

QUEEN OF SOUL ARETHA FRANKLIN DIES AGED 76

By DAILYMAIL | 2018-08-17

Aretha Franklin, the long-reigning Queen of Soul, died yesterday morning at age 76 from advanced pancreatic cancer.

She passed away at 9.50am surrounded by family and friends at her home in Detroit where she had been under hospice care.

Franklin's family said her oncologist confirmed her cause of death was due to the pancreatic cancer she had been battling.

'In one of the darkest moments of our lives, we are not able to find the appropriate words to express the pain in our heart. We have lost the matriarch and rock of our family,' a statement from her family read.

'We have been deeply touched by the incredible outpouring of love and support we have received from close friends, supporters and fans all around the world. Thank you for your compassion and prayers.

“We have felt your love for Aretha and it brings us comfort to know that her legacy will live on. As we grieve, we ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time.”

Funeral arrangements will be announced in the coming days.

Franklin, who sang with matchless style on such classics as 'Think,' 'I Say a Little Prayer' and her signature song, 'Respect', announced her retirement from touring last year.

The mother-of-four had battled various undisclosed health issues in recent years.

Her last public performance was at Elton John's AIDS Foundation gala in New York in November last year.

A professional singer by her late teens and a superstar by her mid-20s, Franklin had long ago settled any arguments over who was the greatest popular vocalist of her time.

She recorded hundreds of tracks and had dozens of hits over the span of a half century, including 20 that reached number one on the R&B charts.

Her records sold millions of copies and the music industry couldn't honour her enough. Franklin won 18 Grammy awards and in 1987 she became the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Fellow singers bowed to her eminence and political and civic leaders treated her as a peer.

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was a longtime friend, and she sang at the dedication of King's memorial, in 2011. She also performed at the funeral for civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks in 2005.

She also performed at the inaugurations of Presidents Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama.

Franklin was awarded the national medal of the arts by Clinton and President George W. Bush awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honour, in 2005.

Her best-known appearance with a president was in January 2009 when she sang 'My Country 'tis of Thee' at Obama's inauguration. She wore a gray felt hat with a huge, Swarovski rhinestone-bordered bow that became an Internet sensation and even had its own website.

In 2015, she brought Obama and others to tears with a triumphant performance of 'Natural Woman' at a Kennedy Center tribute to the song's co-writer, Carole King.

Soon after news of her death was announced, celebrities took to social media to mourn the loss of the Queen of Soul. John Legend, Barbra Streisand and The Clintons were among the first to share touching notes about Franklin.

Clive Davis, the music mogul who brought her to Arista Records and helped revive her career in the 1980s, said he was 'devastated' by her death.

“She was truly one of a kind. She was more than the Queen of Soul. She was a national treasure to be cherished by every generation throughout the world,” he said.

“Apart from our long professional relationship, Aretha was my friend.

Her loss is deeply profound and my heart is full of sadness.” Smokey Robinson, who grew up with her in Detroit, said: “This morning my longest friend in this world went home to be with our father. I will miss her so much but I know she's at peace.” Daily Mail

share story