Nickname: The Queen of Soul
Genre: Soul / R&B / Gospel / Pop / Rock / Blues / Jazz / Opera
Most Memorable Recording: "Respect"
Followers: Vanessa Van Spall, Ryan Shaw, Jennifer Hudson, Bianca Ryan, Paris Bennett, Cheri Dennis, Sharrie Williams, Christia Mantzke, Fantasia, Javine, Lizz Wright, Terri Walker, Kelly Clarkson, Soluna, Sharon Brown, Natalie Brown, Juanes, Mary Thornton, Jill Scott, The McClurkin Project, Antsy McClain, Jess Klein, Halley DeVestern, Anna Vissi, Carmen Consoli, Antonella Bucci, Alexia, Eboni Foster, Pat Cisarano, Mónica Naranjo, Juanita Williams, Tweet, Angie Stone, Keith Stegall, Monie Love, Queen Latifah, Shirley Johnson, Jean-Jacques Goldman, Joy Fleming, Terry Ellis, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, The Family, Dee Dee Wilde, Anita Pointer, Billy Always, Marilyn Scott, Sandra Feva, June Pointer, Ace Spectrum, B Angie B, Eileen Farrell, The Pointer Sisters, Bonnie Pointer, Freddie Mercury, Patti LaBelle, Margie Joseph, Janis Joplin, Whitney Houston, Jennifer Holliday, Culture Club, Rita Coolidge, Natalie Cole, Judy Mowatt, Dennis Brown, Deniece Williams, Candi Staton, Helen Baylor, and many more.
She is known the world over by her first name and as the undisputed, reigning “Queen Of Soul,” Aretha Franklin is peerless. This 2005 recipient of a Presidential Medal Of Freedom honor (the U.S.A.’s highest honor), 20 Grammy Awards (and counting), a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and a Grammy Living Legend Award. She has received countless international and national awards and accolades. Aretha has achieved global recognition on an unprecedented scale. She has influenced generations of singers from Chaka Khan,Natalie Cole and Mary J. Blige to “American Idol” winner Fantasia Barrino and Oscar winning Jennifer Hudson. Her ever-distinctive soulful, to-the-bone vocal style has graced the music charts for over four decades and while her ‘live’ performances have touched the hearts of literally millions since she began her musical journey as a gospel-singing child prodigy, it is her rich legacy of recordings that are a testament to the power, majesty and genius of this one-of-a-kind artist of the first order.
Beyond the timeless classic hits such as “Respect,” “A Natural Woman,” “Chain Of Fools,” “Think,” “Daydreaming” and “Freeway Of Love” among the dozens of chart-topping records that have established her as a cultural icon, Aretha Franklin’s catalog of over forty albums informs listeners of her unmatched, unparalleled artistry as an interpreter of song, bar none. Her elevation to ‘royal’ status is indeed not just a function of her hitmaking ability but of her unique inventiveness as a musician who fuses art and soul seamlessly. Indeed, it’s often been said that Aretha could take ‘happy birthday’ and turn it into a veritable opus and while those who know her will testify to her culinary skills in the kitchen, it is her mastery as a musical chef that is evident on each and every one of those forty-plus albums, many of which have achieved gold and platinum status.
David NathanBeyond the timeless classic hits such as “Respect,” “A Natural Woman,” “Chain Of Fools,” “Think,” “Daydreaming” and “Freeway Of Love” among the dozens of chart-topping records that have established her as a cultural icon, Aretha Franklin’s catalog of over forty albums informs listeners of her unmatched, unparalleled artistry as an interpreter of song, bar none. Her elevation to ‘royal’ status is indeed not just a function of her hitmaking ability but of her unique inventiveness as a musician who fuses art and soul seamlessly. Indeed, it’s often been said that Aretha could take ‘happy birthday’ and turn it into a veritable opus and while those who know her will testify to her culinary skills in the kitchen, it is her mastery as a musical chef that is evident on each and every one of those forty-plus albums, many of which have achieved gold and platinum status.
Franklin's version of "Respect," coming as it did at a crucial point for black activism, feminism, and sexual liberation, was particularly potent. Wexler noted that Franklin took Redding's more conventional take on the song and "turned it inside out, making it deeper, stronger, loading it with double entendres." What's more, he noted, "The fervor in Aretha's magnificent voice" implied not just everyday respect but "sexual attention of the highest order," as implied by the "sock it to me" backup chorus she and her sisters devised.
Writer Evelyn C. White, in an Essencepiece, referred to "Respect" as a revolutionary force in her own life. Franklin's "impassioned, soulful licks and sly innuendos about sexual pleasure made me feel good about myself," she wrote, "both as a black American and as a young girl about to discover sex." Eventually, the song would become an American pop standard. At the time of its release, however, it served primarily as a fight song for social change, and went on to score two trophies at that year's Grammy Awards.
