Aretha Franklin, universally acclaimed as the “Queen of Soul” and one of America’s greatest singers in any style, died on Thursday, August at her home in Detroit. She was 76.

The cause was advanced pancreatic cancer.

In her indelible late-1960s hits, Ms. Franklin brought the righteous passionate expression of gospel music to secular songs that were about much more than just romance. Hits like “Do Right Woman — Do Right Man,” “Think,” "A Natural Woman” and “Chain of Fools” all defined a modern female archetype: sensual and strong, long-suffering but ultimately indomitable, loving but not to be taken for granted.

When Ms. Franklin sang “Respect,” the Otis Redding song that became her signature, it was never just about how a woman wanted to be greeted by her man coming home from work.

It was a demand for equality and freedom and a harbinger of feminism, carried by a voice that would accept nothing less. Aretha Franklin had a grandly celebrated career. She placed more than 100 singles in the Billboard charts, including 17 Top 10 pop singles and 20 No. 1 R&B hits. She received18 competitive Grammy Awards, along with a lifetime achievement award in 1994. She was the first woman inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, in 1987, its second year. She sang at the inauguration of Barack Obama in 2009, at pre-inauguration concerts for Jimmy Carter in 1977 and Bill Clinton in 1993, and at both the Democratic National Convention and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral in 1968.

Today QLJN RADIO pays tribute to the legendary Queen of Soul.

Hosts: LadyJaz

Producer: DJ Flip

Guests: Musical Recording Artists Raymond Coats & Jayna Blackwell

Call (347) 237-5342 and press "1" to speak live on the air.

Farewell Tribute To The Queen, Aretha Franklin QLJN Radio with LadyJaz & DJ Flip

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