Women in Literature and Music

Aretha Franklin

Born Aretha Louise Franklin on March 25, 1942; in Memphis, Tennessee, USA. Her parents were Barbra Singers, a homemaker and Clarence Franklin, a Baptist minister. She started singing as a child, in the choir at her father's church. Her father, Clarence was one of the most prominent and respected ministers in the US at the time, so Aretha grew up surrounded by local and national celebrities; she befriended gospel greats including, Mahalia Jackson, Sam Cooke & Clara Ward. She learned how to play piano by ear and quickly picked up the right tones and pitches needed for making music. When she was 14, Aretha recorded a few early tracks at her father's church, that were released by a small label; as an album entitled, Songs of Faith (1956).

Aretha was exposed to "adult life" while on the road & at the age of just 14, she became a mother for the first time, giving birth to her son, Clarence. Two years later she had a second son whom she named, Edward, both sons took her family name. Later on, Aretha would have 2 more sons, Ted White Jr. & Kecalf Cunningham. 

Aretha released her first single at the age of 18, under Columbia Records, it reached #10 on the Billboard Top 100 charts and her first record was released in January 1961. While working for Columbia, she managed two more R&B hits, Operation Heartbreak and Won't Be Long. However Columbia couldn't tell which direction Aretha was taking her music and felt like that had failed to recognize her potential. So in 1966, she signed with Atlantic Records, where she released her legendary single, Respect, written by the King of Soul himself, Otis Redding. The song sent a message to Americans about equality, respect and peace. Along with the release of the song she would create a new vocal skill called "call and response". This new approach, used a backup singer & helped liven up her performances. Under Atlantic Records, she came out with three more top 10 hits; Baby I Love You, A Natural Woman and Chain of Fools. She also won her first 2 Grammys with Atlantic and 8 more in the female R&B vocals category.

Not only was she able to become a music icon but she became a key figure in the civil rights movement in the US because of her collaboration with Otis Redding for the song, Respect. After her musical success, she acquired the nickname, The Queen of Soul. In the 60's she released hit songs like; Think, I Say a Little Prayer and Ain't No Way. 

In the 1970's she started coming out with more gospel-type songs such as, Don't Play that Song, Rocksteady and Daydreaming. In 1972, she released her album, Amazing Grace, which became the bestselling gospel album of all time. In the mid-70's despite releasing a slew of hit songs, she began to lose touch with her soul-pop audiences because of the rise of disco into mainstream music. In 1979, she released La Diva, a disco album to draw in lovers of the music genre. Unfortunately, the album sold less than 50,000 copies and was considered the lowest point of her career. On June 10 of that year, her father was shot by a burglar and went into a coma for 5 years before passing away on July 27, 1984. Aretha had decided to move back to Detroit to take care of her father, so she was by his side when he died. 

In 1982, she released her album, Jump to It!, featuring Luther Vandross. It was a hit, selling 600,000 copies and staying on the top 10 charts for 7 weeks, becoming gold certified. In 1985. Aretha released another album with an element of rock, which she'd never done before. It was entitled, "Who's Zoomin' Who?", it quickly earned platinum. In the following decade she collaborated with a number of big names including, Elton John and Whitney Houston. In the 90's she worked under Arista Records, continuing to release songs and albums but at a slower rate. In 2003, she left the company after 23 years and founded her own music label, Aretha. She released her first album under the label, A Woman Falling out of Love in 2011, marking her 50 years in show business. Not only is Aretha Franklin one of the most influential singers of all time but she's an activist, using music as a tool for truth, equality and soul. 

On August 12, 2018, news outlets reported that Aretha was "gravely ill" & was bedridden at home in Detroit, surrounded by family & friends. She succumbed to her illness 4 days later on August 16, 2018. Her illness was revealed by her family to have been pancreatic cancer. A televised funeral was held on August 31 at the Greater Grace Temple, in Detroit. Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan & Jennifer Hudson were amongst those scheduled to perform. Bill Clinton & Smokey Robinson highlighted the list of speakers.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0291349/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm

https://www.biography.com/people/aretha-franklin-9301157