aretha franklin dies
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Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin May Have Left Behind a Will After All
It seems the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, had a will after all—maybe even three. A personal representative for her estate found three handwritten wills inside the singer’s home earlier this month, CNN reports. The documents are dated June 21, 2010, October 20, 2010, and March 31, 2014, according to the report. They were found…
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Aretha Franklin's Assets Were Stolen Prior to Her Death
While the world continues to mourn the loss of Aretha Franklin, details continue to emerge regarding her final days, as well as the financial status of her estate. Though back taxes remain a point a contention, WDIV Local 4 reports that the Queen of Soul was also the victim of theft. As local authorities confirm…
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Fit for a Queen: Even in Death, Aretha Franklin Makes a Fashion Statement
As mourners filed past Aretha Franklin lying in repose on the first of a two-day public viewing at Detroit’s Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, they were likely comforted to see that the Queen of Soul, avid lover of luxury, was to be buried as she lived—in high style. As reported by USA…
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Freeway of Love: Mary Kay's Top Sellers Are Planning a Pink Cadillac Tribute at Aretha's Funeral
When mourners arrive at Detroit’s Greater Grace Temple on Friday, August 31 to pay tribute to Aretha Franklin, they will be greeted with a sea of pink—pink Cadillacs, that is. Legions of sales directors from multi-level marketing company Mary Kay, one of the largest direct sellers of cosmetics worldwide, will be parking their famed pink…
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Aretha Franklin, With a Reported Net Worth of $80 Million, Died With No Will
In what strikes many as odd, soul singer Aretha Franklin died without a will. The “Queen of Soul” who died at age 76 on Thursday, died “intestate,” according to court documents obtained by TMZ. Franklin’s not having a will was surprising for two main reasons: she had reportedly been ill for quite some time (she…
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Queen of Soul and Body-Positive Icon: A Look Back at Aretha's Franklin's Memorable Style
The icon we knew as Aretha Franklin was a lot of things: musical prodigy, Queen of Soul, church girl, teenage mother (and possible abuse/rape survivor), Detroit native, shade-master and legendary diva. But while all of those titles may apply, there is one we often overlook: Aretha Franklin, in her own, over-the-top way, was a body-positive…
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Fox News Is Trash: Network Celebrates Life of Aretha Franklin With Photo of Patti Labelle
There are times when the collective digital Caucasian conscience known as Fox News is so blatantly racist-adjacent that it crosses the line of conservative commentary and becomes laughably stupid. Sometimes they are so willfully wrong that it seems as if they are trolling us. On Thursday, upon learning of the death of perhaps the greatest…
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The Last National Anthem
Aretha Franklin was not the Queen of Soul music. Although it is named after the music genre that emerged in the ’50s, all music is soul music. Jazz is soul music. Hip-hop is soul music. I imagine that there is someone right now eating a double kale club sandwich with extra mayo, drinking an avocado-flavored…
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'R-E-S-P-E-C-T': Aretha Created a Women’s Anthem Out of a Song Written for a Man
If you grew up a lover of soul music, you know that today, Aug. 16, 2018, is a day to honor the memory of the undisputed Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, who died on Thursday at age 76 of pancreatic cancer. For those of us who will be playing her music for the remainder of…