ARETHA FRANKLIN A tribute to the icon who earned the world’s respect
l Who How the Queen of Soul gained the world’s respect
It was an occasion fit for a queen. On Jan. 20, 2009, Aretha Franklin stood on the steps of the Capitol, in Washington DC, at Barack Obama’s presidential inauguration. Wearing a grey felt hat topped with a wild bow, Franklin belted out a rousing version of “My Country ’Tis Of Thee”. This was the perfect performance for a singer who had always demanded—and received—our respect.
Franklin—famous for her hits such as “( You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”, “Freeway of Love” and, of course, “Respect”— died on Aug. 16, after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Her devastated family released a statement announcing her death. “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,” the statement said. “We have lost the matriarch and rock of our family. The love she had for her children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and cousins knew no bounds.”
Dubbed the Queen of Soul, the 18-time Grammy winner is recognised as the greatest soul singer of all time. In 1987, she was the first woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Her songs have become anthems for the US civil rights movement and for women throughout the world. “I didn’t think my songs would become anthems for women,” Franklin told Time in 2017. “But I’m delighted. Women probably immediately feel compassion and relate to the lyrics. We can all learn a little something from each other, so whatever people can take and be inspired by where my music is concerned is great.”
Franklin was born in Memphis, Tennessee, to C.L. Franklin, a pastor, and Barbara Siggers, a singer and pianist. The family soon shifted to Detroit, where Franklin’s father became a pastor at the New Bethel Baptist Church. There Franklin developed a passion for gospel singing.
Her parents separated—reportedly due to C.L.’S philandering ways—when Franklin was just 6. Barbara moved to Buffalo, New York, with her son from a previous marriage, but died four years later. Tragic though this was, Franklin’s singing career blossomed. Growing up in Detroit, she was surrounded by musicians such as B.B. King, Sam Cooke and Smokey Robinson was a childhood friend. Musically, her style was shifting from gospel music to soul-flavoured pop.
In 1960, when she was 18, Franklin, who was then managed by her father, turned down an offer from Berry Gordy’s Motown record label in favour of New York’s Columbia Records. However, it wasn’t until she moved to Atlantic Records seven years later that Franklin really started to make her mark on the music world. First came her 1967 song, “I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)”. It was the follow-up single that year that really put Franklin on the map. The singer’s version of “Respect”, written by Otis Redding, reached No. 1 on US charts. It hit No. 14 on the Australian charts—proof Franklin’s fame was stretching far beyond US borders. Importantly, the song, with its iconic R-E- S-P-E-C-T lyric, helped galvanise the US civil rights movement. Franklin was not in completely foreign territory. Her father had walked beside Dr Martin Luther King Jnr at a rally in Detroit in 1963. But Franklin understood the song’s significance beyond being a protest anthem. “Everybody wants respect,” she told Rolling Stone in 2014. “In their own way, 3-year-olds would like respect, and acknowledgment, in their terms.”
Throughout the 1960s, Franklin was unstoppable. In 1967, Dionne Warwick had a hit with “I Say A Little Prayer”. Months later, Franklin was in the studio and started fooling around singing the song during rehearsals. Atlantic Records producer Jerry Wexler heard Franklin’s take on the tune and quickly organised musicians to record the song.
“I didn’t think my songs would become anthems”
The following year, the song was released as a single. “Aretha had only to open her mouth in a recording studio and the song became hers,” author Serene Dominic wrote in her book, Burt Bacharach: Song By Song.
She may have been a soul diva, but Franklin’s home life was always turbulent. The singer gave birth to her first child when she was just 12 to a local Detroit boy. By 15, she had two children to different fathers. “I still wanted to get out and hang out with my friends,” she told Ebony in 1995 of being a young mother. “I wanted to be in two places at the same time. But my grandmother helped me a lot, and my sister and my cousin. They would babysit so I could get out occasionally.”
In New York, Franklin met Ted White, who would become her manager. They married in 1961 and had a son together, but they split in 1969, with rumours of domestic violence. Franklin also had her demons, fighting an addiction to alcohol at this time.
The 1980s saw a career resurgence for Franklin. She appeared in the 1980 cult musical movie The Blues Brothers. Then, in 1985, her album Who’s Zoomin’ Who produced the smash hit “Freeway of Love”. A duet with George Michael, “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)” and one with the Eurythmics, “Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves” saw Franklin back on top of the charts.
In November last year, the singer performed for the final time at Elton John’s AIDS Foundation benefit in New York. “I was fortunate enough to spend time with her and witness her last performance,” Elton tweeted after Aretha’s death. “She was obviously unwell, and I wasn’t sure she could perform.” But Franklin did and she raised the roof. “She sang and played magnificently, and we all wept. The whole world will miss her but will always rejoice in her remarkable legacy. The Queen is dead. Long live the Queen.”
“The whole world will miss her” —Elton John