ARETHA Franklin’s illustrious and memorable life ended with the iconic singer surrounded by family and loved ones, her family and friends say.
Vaughn Franklin, Franklin’s nephew, told reporters Aretha was “surrounded by a lot of love” as her life slipped away.
“The family was there,” he said. “Just seeing her transition from where she was to where she was when I last saw her this past week was just breathtaking.”
“You can’t put words on it,” he added. “It just broke your heart.”
Aretha Franklin portrait with father and sister
Franklin, 76, died Thursday at 9:50 a.m. at her home in Detroit, surrounded by family and friends, according to a statement on behalf of Franklin’s family from her longtime publicist Gwendolyn Quinn.
According to the the family statement, “The official cause of death was due to advanced pancreatic cancer of the neuroendocrine type, which was confirmed by Franklin’s oncologist, Dr. Philip Phillips of Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit,”
According to the family:
“We have been deeply touched by the incredible outpouring of love and support we have received from close friends, supporters and fans all around the world,” the family said in a statement after her death. “Thank you for your compassion and prayers. We have felt your love for Aretha and it brings us comfort to know that her legacy will live on. As we grieve, we ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time.”
In the days leading up to her death, Franklin received visits from high-profile figures such as Rev. Jesse Jackson and singer Stevie Wonder.
Aretha’s former husband, actor Glynn Turman, visited Franklin along with Wonder and told People magazine he held “her frail, frail arm.”
“I was able to feel her pulse, which was strong,” he said. “So she was fighting ’til the very end.”
The woman he was married to from 1978 to 1984 had always been a warrior and strong, Turman said.
“Her pulse told me that she was not in surrender mode,” he said. “She was going to fight it ’til the end.”
Turman said the pair had remained friends after their divorce, often talking on the phone. He said he would remember her humor and stubbornness.
“She just didn’t take tea for the fever, as the old folks would say,” Turman said. “She was stubborn and hard to persuade. When she got her mind made up on something, you might as well pretty much forget trying to change it.”
Turman said, although Franklin was not able to speak during his visit, she was aware that he and Wonder were there.
“And we were able to feed off of that recognition, feed off of the moment of both sort of realizing that time was extremely precious at this time,” he said. “So it was a moment full of closure.”
Aretha Franklin’s on Wikipedia
Aretha Louise Franklin (March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer and pianist. She began her career as a child singing gospel at New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, Michigan, where her father, C. L. Franklin, was minister.
In 1960, at the age of 18, she embarked on a secular career, recording for Columbia Records but achieving only modest success. After signing to Atlantic Records in 1967, Franklin achieved commercial acclaim and success with songs such as “Respect”, “Chain of Fools”, “Think”, “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”, “Don’t Play That Song (You Lied)”, and “Spanish Harlem”.
By the end of the 1960s she was being called “The Queen of Soul“. Franklin recorded acclaimed albums such as I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You (1967), Lady Soul (1968), Young, Gifted and Black (1972) and Amazing Grace (1972), before experiencing problems with her record company by the mid-1970s.
After her father was shot in 1979, she left Atlantic and signed with Arista Records, finding success with the albums Jump to It (1982) and Who’s Zoomin’ Who? (1985), and her part in the 1980 film The Blues Brothers.
In 1998, Franklin received international acclaim for singing the opera aria “Nessun dorma” at the Grammy Awards that year, replacing Luciano Pavarotti. Later that year, she scored her final Top 40 song with “A Rose Is Still a Rose”.
Franklin recorded 112 charted singles on Billboard, including 77 Hot 100 entries, 17 top-ten pop singles, 100 R&B entries and 20 number-one R&B singles, becoming the most charted female artist in the chart’s history.
Franklin’s other well-known hits include “Rock Steady”, “Jump to It”, “Freeway of Love”, “Who’s Zoomin’ Who”, “Until You Come Back to Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do)”, “Something He Can Feel”, “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)” (with George Michael), and a remake of The Rolling Stones song “Jumpin’ Jack Flash”.
She won 18 Grammy Awards, including the first eight awards given for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance from 1968 through to 1975, and is one of the bestselling musical artists of all time, having sold more than 75 million records worldwide.
Franklin received numerous honors throughout her career, including a 1987 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, becoming the first female performer to be inducted. She was inducted to the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005. In August 2012, she was inducted into the GMA Gospel Music Hall of Fame. Franklin is listed in at least two all-time lists on Rolling Stone magazine, including the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, and the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time.
