Aretha Franklin Wiki, Bio, Age, Net Worth, Height, Husband

Aretha Franklin was a legendary singer in the United States. Aretha Franklin was a civil rights activist as well as a singer. She won multiple accolades and garnered numerous honors during her career as a vocalist.

Early Years

Aretha Franklin was born on March 25, 1942, and died on August 16, 2018. She was 76 years old at the time of her death. Her zodiac sign is Aries, and she was born in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Similarly, Aretha Louise Franklin is her entire name.

Aretha Franklin’s parents are Barbara (née Siggers) and Clarence LaVaughn “C. L.” Franklin, who raised her. She was born at her family’s home in Memphis, Tennessee, at 406 Lucy Avenue. Aretha Franklin’s father was a Baptist minister who also served as a circuit preacher. Clarence was born in Shelby, Mississippi, and grew up there. Aretha Franklin’s mother, too, was a pianist and singer.

Siblings

Aretha’s parents had children from previous marriages. The couple has four biological children together. As a result, Erma Franklin, Carolyn Franklin, and Cecil Franklin were Aretha’s biological siblings. Aretha Franklin’s sisters were also skilled musicians who contributed background vocals to Aretha’s songs for many years.

Similarly, until his death from lung cancer on December 26, 1989, Aretha Franklin’s brother served as her manager. Carolyn died from breast cancer in April 1988, and Erma died from throat cancer in September 2002. Vaughn and Carol Kelley are Aretha’s half-siblings. Carol went away in 2019 and Vaughn passed away in late 2002.

Aretha’s family moved to Buffalo, New York when she was two years old. Her family had moved to Detroit permanently by the time she was five years old. Her father became the pastor of the New Bethel Baptist Church there.

Aretha Franklin’s Parents

Similarly, Aretha’s parents had a rocky marriage due to her father’s affairs. Aretha Franklin’s parents eventually divorced in 1948. Her mother had returned to Buffalo with her half-brother, Vaughn, at the time. Aretha traveled to see her mother in Buffalo during the summer after the divorce, but her mother visited them frequently in Detroit.

In addition, on March 7, 1952, her mother died after a heart attack. Aretha was just ten years old at the time. Aretha went to a public school in Detroit after that. She attended Northern High School for her freshman year. Aretha, on the other hand, dropped out during her second year.

Many celebrities paid Aretha Franklin and her father a visit at their house. Early Caravans members Albertina Walker and Inez Andrew, as well as gospel performers Clara Ward and James Cleveland, were among them. Aretha Franklin’s father made acquaintances with Martin Luther King Jr., Jackie Wilson, and Sam Cooke. From roughly 1949 until Clara’s death in 1973, musician Clara was intimately involved with her father.

Professional Life and Career

Aretha Franklin was a well-known vocalist as well as a civil rights activist in her professional life. She began her career singing gospel as a child. It all started at Detroit’s New Bethel Baptist Church. Aretha Franklin’s father was a minister in this church.

Aretha began her secular music career when she was only 18 years old. It was a career as a Columbia Records recording artist. After signing with Atlantic Records in 1966, Aretha achieved commercial success. I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You), Think, You Make Me Feel Like (A Natural Woman), Respect, Chain of Fools, and I Say a Little Prayer are some of Aretha Franklin’s hit songs. Aretha Franklin was known as the “Queen of Soul” at the end of the 1960s.

Aretha Franklin went on to record classic albums such as I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You in 1967, Lady Soul in 1968, Spirit in the Dark in 1970, Young, Gifted, and Black in 1972, and Amazing Grace in 1976.

From 1990 till now

Aretha Franklin returned to the Top 40 in 1998 with her song A Rose Is Still a Rose. Aretha Franklin followed up with an album of the same name. Later, the album was certified gold. Aretha Franklin received widespread acclaim for her performance of Nessun Dorma at the Grammy Awards in 1998. Aretha Franklin stepped in at the last minute for Luciano Pavarotti at this event. Luciano only decided to cancel his appearance after the show had already started.

Similarly, Aretha paid tribute to Carole King, the 2015 recipient. At the Kennedy Center Honors, she did it with (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman. Aretha Franklin also had 112 Billboard charting songs.

Ain’t No Way, Call Me, Freeway of Love, Until You Come Back to Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do), Don’t Play That Song (You Lied), Rock Steady, Who’s Zoomin’ Who, Spanish Harlem, Day Dreaming, Something He Can Feel, Jump to It, and I Knew You Were Waiting are among Aretha’s renowned singles (For Me). Her duet with George Michael, I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me), is a hit.

Honors and Awards

Aretha Franklin, on the other hand, has 18 Grammy Awards. From 1968 until 1975, the first eight awards were given for “Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.” Aretha has also received various awards during the course of her career.

Aretha Franklin was awarded the National Medal of Arts as well as the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Aretha became the first female performer to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. In 2005, Aretha Franklin was also inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame. Aretha Franklin was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2012.

Similarly, Aretha Franklin was named the “100 Greatest Singers of All Time” by Rolling Stone magazine in 2010. She was also ranked #9 on the magazine’s list of the “100 Greatest Artists of All Time.” In 2019, the Pulitzer Prize jury bestowed a posthumous special commendation on the singer for her enduring contribution to American music and culture over the past five decades. Aretha Franklin was been elected into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 2020.

Status of the Relationship

Aretha Franklin has been married twice and divorced. Ted White was Aretha’s first husband. Aretha Franklin and Aretha Franklin married in 1961, when Aretha was barely 18 years old. However, they divorced in 1969 after splitting up in 1968. Following this, Aretha married her second husband, actor Glynn Turman, on April 11, 1978.

Aretha became the stepmother to Glynn’s three children from a previous marriage as a result of this marriage. Unfortunately, after Aretha returned to Michigan from California in 1982, she and Glynn split up. Following that, in 1984, the two divorced.

Aretha was also a mother to four sons. Aretha became pregnant for the first time at the age of twelve. On January 28, 1955, she gave birth to her first child, Clarence. Aretha disclosed that Clarence’s father was Edward Jordan in one of her handwritten wills unearthed in 2019.

Then, on August 31, 1957, Aretha and Jordan had their second child. Edward Derone Franklin was his name. In February 1964, Aretha gave birth to her third child. Ted White Jr. is the son of Aretha Franklin’s then-husband Theodore “Ted” White.

Aretha also gave birth to her youngest son in April 1970. Kecalf Cunningham is his name, and his father, Ken Cunningham, is Aretha Franklin’s road manager. Aretha never married again after the second marriage. Since the late 1980s, she has been romantically associated to Willie Wilkerson. Early in 2012, Willie and Aretha confirmed their engagement. The pair, however, called off their wedding a few weeks later.

Demise

Aretha Franklin was reported to be severely ill at her residence at Riverfront Towers, Detroit, on August 13, 2018. Aretha Franklin was in hospice care at the time. During her final moments, Jesse Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and Aretha Franklin’s ex-husband Glynn Turman paid her visits.

Aretha Franklin died on August 16, 2018, at the age of 76. She died at the age of 76 at her home. A malignant pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor was the cause of her death. Several celebrities, including former US President Barack Obama, paid tribute to her. Al Sharpton, a civil rights leader and clergyman, also paid her respect, describing her as a civil rights and humanitarian icon.

Body Dimensions

Aretha Franklin stood 5 feet 5 inches (1.65 meters) tall. Similarly, the legendary vocalist had dark brown eyes and dark brown hair.

Net Worth and Social Media

Aretha Franklin’s Twitter account, @ArethaFranklin, was launched in January 2012 and currently has over 138.9K followers. Similarly, as of May 2021, the late singer’s Instagram account, @arethafranklin, had over 129k followers.

Aretha Franklin’s journey is also being followed by 2.5 million people on Facebook. On November 9, 2018, Aretha Franklin’s YouTube channel “Aretha Franklin” was launched. With over 161.4 million views and 312K subscribers, this channel is a hit. Aretha Franklin’s net worth was estimated to be $80 million US dollars. David Bennett, Aretha Franklin’s longtime attorney, revealed that the singer owed $8 million in taxes at the time of her death.

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