Less than a week before her death, Aretha Franklin was on the phone with a friend, planning her next record. I want hit records! In her final decade, up to her very last days, the Queen of Soul refused to let anything slow her down. Franklin had been outrunning her own mortality since December , when she underwent surgery for what was later revealed to be pancreatic cancer. For Franklin, pushing on during the last few years of her life meant a slew of big plans that might have overwhelmed many younger artists, including several possible new albums and a biopic. She spoke with both Mason and Edmonds about working on what she hoped would be her first album of new material since In her quest to remain relevant, Franklin was determined to make a radio-friendly set featuring new songs written for her by Edmonds, Stevie Wonder and Elton John. It kept her going. Franklin kept a presence on the touring circuit, playing roughly one concert a month for the first nine months of — always at venues that could be reached by bus, due to her longtime fear of flying.
Noname, ‘Song 33’
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By Chris Willman. A new music video for a fresh remix of an Aretha Franklin track connects the civil rights movement she supported in the s with the current Black Lives Matter protests that the Queen of Soul did not quite live to see. The video was released Friday night to dovetail with Juneteenth, as was the track itself, which came out earlier in the day. Blige, but the new version lets Franklin carry the vocal load for the entirety of the modern spiritual. It won the Grammy for best gospel performance in , her 18th and final win. Everyone should hear this record. It deserves to be an anthem.
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Franklin was a minister. At the age of 18, she embarked on a secular-music career as a recording artist for Columbia Records. While Franklin's career did not immediately flourish, she found acclaim and commercial success after signing with Atlantic Records in
Franklin was a minister. At the age of 18, she embarked on a secular-music career as a recording artist for Columbia Records. While Franklin's career did not immediately flourish, she found acclaim and commercial success after signing with Atlantic Records in By the end of the s, Aretha Franklin had come to be known as the "Queen of Soul". Franklin left Atlantic in and signed with Arista Records. In , Franklin returned to the Top 40 with the Lauryn Hill-produced song "A Rose Is Still a Rose"; later, she released an album of the same name which was certified gold. That same year, Franklin earned international acclaim for her performance of "Nessun dorma" at the Grammy Awards; she filled in at the last minute for Luciano Pavarotti, who canceled his appearance after the show had already begun.
