Aretha Franklin

Biography & Life Stories

Aretha Franklin was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist widely recognized as the Queen of Soul. Her life and work map the evolution of postwar American music, blending g...

culture

The actress who plays Aretha Franklin in the Genius anthology series is Courtney B. Vance. He portrays the legendary singer in the Aretha Franklin episode that launched the seri...

Status Updates

In the months preceding her death in August 2018, Aretha Franklin was gravely ill with advanced pancreatic cancer, a condition that is typically aggressive and difficult to trea...

people-relationships

Bill Clinton and Aretha Franklin were connected through the intersecting worlds of music, politics, and public service, producing moments of cultural significance that extended...

people

Aretha Franklin had four children: Clarence, Edward, Teddy, and Kecalf, each with a distinct path shaped by their lineage and upbringing. This profile clarifies their names, mot...

Status Updates

Lying in state is an official honor in which a distinguished individual is presented in a ceremonial casket or coffin, typically under a rotunda or major public building, for pu...

Relationships

Aretha Franklin and Ted White are linked by one of the most closely examined personal chapters in American music history. Their relationship, which began in the early 1960s duri...

Relationships

Aretha Franklin and Glynn Turman share a direct family bond through marriage: they were married from 1978 to 1984. Turman is the father of Aretha’s only child, a daughter name...

Biography & Profile

Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, built a legendary career through a combination of extraordinary talent and strategic business oversight. Behind the music were managers who s...

Verified Explainer

Aretha Franklin’s father, the Reverend C.B. Franklin, was shot during a 1979 home invasion in Detroit and never fully recovered. After multiple complications, he died in 1984...