24 reasons why history will never forget Aretha Franklin’s light

VH1 placed Franklin at #1 on their list of “Greatest Women in Rock N Roll.”

Aretha Franklin made history in 1987 as the first woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame – a ceremony which she missed due to her fear of flying.

Alongside pop legends such as Michael Jackson and Diana Ross, Franklin performed at Bill Clinton’s inauguration ceremony.

Though we all may remember Franklin for her organically beautiful voice, a certain U.S. state has already done you one better: Michigan legally recognizes her voice as a “natural resource”

Franklin has won 18 Grammy over her career, and while there are an (albeit very small) handful of other women artist who can claim the same, none of them have the prestigious Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award staring at them from their shelves like Franklin did.

While many artists today, from Gaga to the Killers, consider themselves Freddie Mercury stans, Freddie Mercury was an Aretha Franklin stan

Aretha was undeniably a star, but she has the pavement to prove it, being awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1979.

From one great voice to another: Aretha was Whitney Houston’s godmother, with Houston even referring to her godmother as “Aunt Ree.”

In 2005, Franklin, alongside other cultural trailblazers including Muhammad Ali and Carol Burnett, was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Despite her stateside roots, in 2005 Aretha was also inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame specifically for her contributions and influence to British music and culture.

In 2012, the Gospel Hall of Fame inducted Franklin and honoured her with the title of “the voice of Black America,” due to her outspokenness in the civil rights movement.

Aside from her appearance at the inauguration of Bill Clinton, Franklin also performed at the first inaugural ceremonies of both Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama, ushering in each President’s era of hope and change with a performance of “God Bless America” and “My Country, ‘Tis Of Thee,” respectively.

Voters in a 2008 Rolling Stone poll came together to place Aretha Franklin at number 1 on the list of “The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time.”

Her music touched all corners of the works, with its universal appeal catapulting her to become one of the best selling artists of all time, having sold over 75 million records worldwide.

She’s a natural – Franklin’s skills at the piano were not taught to her, rather she trained herself by ear.

Part of having such a dynamic voice means being able to have your friend’s backs – in 1998, when Luciano Pavarotti had to pull out of a Oscars performance due to illness, Franklin filled in his shoes with a performance of an excerpt from Italian opera “Nessun Dorma” to critical acclaim.

Though Franklin has performed alongside contemporaries including Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder, she has also lent her talents to artists from other genres, including her chart-topping collaboration with George Michael, “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me).”

Franklin was a strong as her voice, releasing albums all the way up until last year’s collaborative release with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, A Brand New Me.

At age 25, Aretha Franklin scored her most iconic hit, a cover of Otis Redding’s “Respect.” Franklin’s cover quickly came to surpass the original in popularity and influenc,e with Redding admitting as much before a performance of his song: “This is a song that a girl took away from me, a good friend of mine. This girl she just took this song!”

Talent seems to run through the entire Franklin family: her father wa one of the most well-known preachers out of Mississippi, being visited by the likes of Martin Luther King Jr., and her sisters provide the backup vocals on “Respect.”

Though a master of the musical arts, there was also the rare occasion where Aretha flexed her comedic muscle, appearing in an iconic scene in the Blues Brothers, along with its sequel, Blues Brothers 2000.

Sure, the Beatles might’ve considered themselves “bigger than Jesus,” but that didn’t stop Aretha Franklin from throwing her hat into the ring with them with her unique takes on “Let It Be” and “Eleanor Rigby.”

In addition to having a voice that’s the sonic equivalent of a bodyslam (in the best way), Aretha took a detour from the inaugurations to free up the time necessary to perform at not just one, but two Wrestlemanias.

Though we find ourselves currently mourning a true icon of Black culture, Aretha has also been there, delivering a heartwrenching performance at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FdFrtNacgU at the memorial of Martin Luther King, Jr. ”