Aretha Louise Franklin ( / ə ˈ r iː θ ə / ə- REE -thə ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. [ 2 ] Honored as the ” Queen of Soul “, she was twice named by Rolling Stone magazine as the greatest singer of all time . [ 3 ] [ 4 ] As a child, Franklin was noticed for her gospel singing at New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit , Michigan , where her father C. L. Franklin was a minister. At the age of 18, she was signed as a recording artist for Columbia Records . While her career did not immediately flourish, Franklin found acclaim and commercial success once she signed with Atlantic Records in 1966. There, she recorded significant hit albums such as I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You , Lady Soul and Aretha Now in the late 1960s and Young, Gifted and Black , Amazing Grace and Sparkle in the 1970s, before experiencing problems with the record company. Franklin left Atlantic in 1979 and signed with Arista Records , where her career was revived with the hit albums Jump to It , Who’s Zoomin’ Who? , Aretha and A Rose Is Still a Rose . Franklin is one of the best-selling music artists , with more than 75 million records sold worldwide. [ 5 ] She charted 112 singles on the US Billboard charts, including 73 Hot 100 entries, 17 top-ten pop singles, 96 R&B entries [ 6 ] and 20 number-one R&B singles. While her rendition of ” Respect ” has been referred to as her signature song , Franklin is known for other hit singles such as ” (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman “, ” Chain of Fools “, ” Think “, ” I Say a Little Prayer “, ” Rock Steady “, ” Day Dreaming “, ” Freeway of Love ” and ” I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me) ” (a duet with George Michael ), to name a few. She also made a featured appearance in the 1980 musical-comedy film The Blues Brothers . Franklin received numerous honors throughout her career. She won 18 Grammy Awards out of 44 nominations, [ 7 ] [ 8 ] including the first eight awards given for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance (1968–1975), as well as a Grammy Living Legend Award and Lifetime Achievement Award . She was also awarded the National Medal of Arts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom . In 1987, she became the first female artist to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame . Her other inductions include the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005, the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2012, [ 9 ] and posthumously the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 2020. [ 10 ] In 2019, the Pulitzer Prize jury awarded her a posthumous special citation “for her indelible contribution to American music and culture for more than five decades”. Aretha Louise Franklin was born on March 25, 1942, to Barbara (née Siggers) and Clarence LaVaughn “C. L.” Franklin . She was delivered at her family’s home located at 406 Lucy Avenue, Memphis, Tennessee . Her father was a Baptist minister and circuit preacher originally from Shelby, Mississippi , while her mother was an accomplished piano player and vocalist. [ 12 ] C. L. and Barbara Franklin both had children from prior relationships in addition to the four children they had together. When Aretha was two years old, the family relocated to Buffalo, New York . [ 13 ] By the time Aretha turned five, C. L. Franklin had permanently relocated the family to Detroit, Michigan where he took over the pastorship of the New Bethel Baptist Church . [ 14 ] The Franklins had a troubled marriage because of C. L. Franklin’s infidelities, and they separated in 1948. [ 15 ] At that time, Barbara Franklin returned to Buffalo with Aretha’s half-brother, Vaughn. [ 16 ] After the separation, Aretha recalled seeing her mother in Buffalo during the summer, and Barbara Franklin frequently visited her children in Detroit. [ 17 ] [ 16 ] Aretha’s mother died of a heart attack on March 7, 1952, before Aretha’s 10th birthday. [ 18 ] Several women, including Aretha’s grandmother, Rachel, and Mahalia Jackson , took turns helping with the children at the Franklin home. [ 19 ] During this time, Aretha learned how to play piano by ear. [ 20 ] She also attended public school in Detroit, going through her first year at Northern High School , but dropping out during her second year. [ 21 ] Aretha became pregnant with her first child, Clarence, when she was only 12 years old. She originally claimed that the father was a classmate named Edward Jordan, but would later write in her will that the father was Edward Jordan Sr. [ 22 ] [ better source needed ] Aretha’s father’s emotionally driven sermons resulted in his being known as the man with the “million-dollar voice”. He earned thousands of dollars for sermons in various churches across the country. [ 23 ] [ 24 ] His fame led to his home being visited by various celebrities. Among the visitors were gospel musicians Clara Ward , James Cleveland , and early Caravans members Albertina Walker and Inez Andrews . Martin Luther King Jr. , Jackie Wilson and Sam Cooke all became friends of C. L. Franklin, as well.
Source https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aretha_Franklin