Aretha Franklin

Aretha Louise Franklin was born on 25 March 1942 in Memphis, Tennessee, and raised primarily in Detroit, where her father, C.L. Franklin, was a prominent Baptist minister whose church hosted gospel performances by major artists including Mahalia Jackson, giving young Aretha direct exposure to some of the era's greatest vocalists. She began singing gospel in her father's church as a child and recorded her first gospel album at age 14, already displaying the extraordinary vocal power that would later define her career.

Franklin signed with Columbia Records in 1960, but the label struggled to find the right musical direction for her, releasing a mix of pop standards and jazz that undersold her gospel-rooted vocal power. Her career transformed dramatically in 1967 when she signed with Atlantic Records and recorded at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, where producer Jerry Wexler encouraged her to record in a style closer to her gospel and R&B roots, unlocking the sound that would make her a global star.

Franklin's 1967 cover of Otis Redding's 'Respect' transformed the song from its original meaning into a powerful anthem of both feminist and civil rights significance, Franklin's rearrangement and delivery — including the now-iconic spelled-out chorus — turning it into one of the most culturally significant recordings in American music history, embraced simultaneously by the civil rights movement and the emerging women's liberation movement.

Through the late 1960s and 1970s, Franklin recorded a remarkable run of hit singles and albums, earning the title 'Queen of Soul' for her extraordinary combination of gospel-rooted vocal power, technical range and emotional depth. She became the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, and continued recording and performing across gospel, soul, R&B and pop for the remainder of her career.

Franklin's voice became closely associated with major national moments: she performed at the inaugurations of Presidents Carter, Clinton and Obama, and her 2015 performance of '(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman' at the Kennedy Center Honors, delivered in tribute to songwriter Carole King, became a widely celebrated viral moment demonstrating her vocal power remained undiminished well into her seventies.

Franklin died in 2018 from pancreatic cancer at age 76, and received an extraordinary outpouring of tribute reflecting her status as one of the most significant vocalists in American music history. She was posthumously awarded a special Pulitzer Prize citation in 2019, recognising her indelible contribution to American music and culture, and remains widely regarded, across countless critical rankings, as the greatest singer in the history of popular music.