Former first lady surprises Grammys audience
National Geographic’s new ‘genius’ is Aretha Franklin
The late singer Aretha Franklin will be the subject of the National Geographic network’s third installment of its “Genius” series.
The network said Sunday that its next miniseries will feature the “Queen of Soul,” who died last year. She’s pushing author Mary Shelley back. National Geographic said last year that the “Frankenstein” author would be its third “Genius,” but said Sunday that Shelley will be used for a later season.
Albert Einstein and Pablo Picasso were the first two focuses of the “Genius” series.
Playwright Suzan-lori Parks will be the executive producer running the show. Music moguls Clive Davis and Craig Kellman of Atlantic Records will also offer their expertise, said Courteney Monroe, National Geographic’s president.
“We could not be more excited about this next season,” she said.
Michelle Obama made a surprise appearance at the Grammys.
During her opening monologue Sunday night, host Alicia Keys invited Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith and Jennifer Lopez to join her on stage at the Staples Center in Los Angeles to say what music meant to them.
Obama then appeared to even bigger screams than the stars already on stage got.
The former first lady talked about the Motown records that got her through her Chicago youth and said “whether we like country, rap or rock, music helps us share ourselves.”