Aretha Franklin is gravely ill and family and friends are gathering in Detroit to spend final moments and say goodbye to the 76-year-old singer according to TMZ.
The Queen of Soul’s family has reportedly asked for ‘prayers and privacy” during this difficult and hard time. No further health details have been released at this time. Aretha Franklin has been battling health issues for the past several years but had continued to wow fans with her performances until last year. The singer’s most recent performance, however, was in November when she performed for the Elton John Aids Foundation in New York.
Franklin’s health took a downward turn last year and doctors advised the singer to take time off. Aretha had announced to fans that she was preparing to retire in the upcoming months following the release of her new album.
“I must tell you, I am retiring this year,” Franklin told WDIV in 2017. “This will be my last year. I will be recording, but this will be my last year in concert. This is it.”
The news that her health is failing first came from Roger Friedman over at Showbiz411, and WDIV TV in Detroit says Aretha’s family confirmed she is gravely ill.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0b0NOoz1os4
Aretha Franklin is best known for her hit songs including “Respect”, “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”, “Spanish Harlem,” “Think” and “I Say A Little Prayer For You.” By the end of the 1960s Aretha Franklin had respectfully earned the title of “The Queen of Soul.” Franklin received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1979, had her voice declared a Michigan “natural resource” in 1985, and became the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. In October 2014, Franklin became the first woman to have 100 songs on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart with the success of her cover of Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep,” which debuted at number 47 on the chart
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