On August 16, the world bid farewell to a legend, Aretha Franklin, who passed away at the age of 76 after a battle with cancer.
Aretha, dubbed the Queen of Soul, had a career that spanned five decades, with hits such as “Respect’, ‘Think’ and ‘Chain of Fools’. She was the first woman to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and was awarded 18 Grammys – an incredible career. Tributes began pouring in from family, friends, members of the public and celebrities, but one standout tribute has to be Ariana Grande’ s rendition of ‘Natural Woman’, another of Aretha’s most well-known tracks.
The performance brought us all to tears – and Ariana too. The singer was already scheduled on the show to promote her album Sweetener, which was released on August 10 and when producers asked her to sing in an Aretha tribute, she apparently declined as she was too upset.
However, according to reports, a member of The Roots’ convinced Ariana to do the performance, and afterwards, she broke down in tears backstage.
A fitting tribute. Rest in peace, Aretha.
