Ariana Grande Tributes Aretha Franklin With Touching “Natural Woman” Cover

Franklin passed away at 9:50 am surrounded by her family and loved ones, her family said in a statement issued by her publicist. “For more than six decades since, every time she sang, we were all graced with a glimpse of the divine”. With 18 Grammy Awards, 73 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, and as the first woman ever inducted in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, it’s safe to say Aretha Franklin was a BAD MAMA JAMA! She was committed to black music and black radio. “She is the reason why women want to sing”. Politicians and activists – along with numerous gospel superstars of the day – were a fixture in the family home. Aretha had plenty of chances to rise and fall during her career and become victim to financial ruin like so many that came before, during, and after her.

Franklin also performed at pre-inauguration concerts for Bill Clinton in 1993 and Jimmy Carter in 1977.

Before performing on The Tonight Show, Ariana shared a photo of herself with the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, with several heart emojis.

In a video package highlighting the star’s most memorable moments, there is a picture of Franklin on the left and the dates of her life with an image of Patti LaBelle in the top right corner.

“She performed at our gala for our 20th anniversary and it was a phenomenal, phenomenal performance”. It was a cover of an Otis Redding single previously released in 1965, but Franklin’s delivery transformed it – from a desperate man pleading with his partner to a confident woman demanding equal footing in her relationship. She will then be entombed at Woodlawn Cemetery in Detroit, alongside her father, Rev. C.L. Franklin; brother Cecil Franklin; sisters Carolyn Franklin and Erma Franklin; and nephew, Thomas Garrett. Using these techniques, as she did with Respect, lyrics could be repositioned to reflect the black female perspective.

Regardless of their politics, it’s safe to say that Obama’s post was a bit more eloquently put, considering how his message honoring Franklin, well, actually honored her. There’s the slinky electric keyboard that starts the song off, and the acoustic piano that chimes in later in a thundering gospel style; there’s a tight rhythm section, and the horns painting a shifting series of colors behind the singer. LaBelle, 74, is a renowned artist in her own right, often dubbed the ‘Godmother of Soul’. In doing so she set the stage for the technical virtuosity of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. Franklin, and a pianist-singer mother, Barbara Siggers Franklin. “Through her compositions and umatched musicanship, Aretha helped define the American experience”.