00:00Aretha Franklin, our Queen of Queens, Queen of Hearts, Queen of Diamonds. She stole our hearts
00:13the minute she sang. Her strength, her energy, her legacy proved that she was a diamond in the rough.
00:23There is only one Queen of Queens. Thank you so much Aretha Franklin for being a part of
00:32especially my humble beginnings because I learned so much by listening to you.
00:40You have been by far my greatest inspiration. Thank you. Rest in paradise.
00:49I remember the day we got the call. It was the summer of 1981 and we had just confirmed Aretha Franklin and Glenn Turman for our December holiday cover and I was in awe.
01:02Now I grew up on a stupid brick city, listening to the Queen of Soul, finding my rhythm and belting out respect long before I had to insist on it.
01:12So you can imagine how I felt. I never dreamed I'd get to meet her, let alone work with her.
01:18But there we were over the course of three days, magical days in California, in her home to start.
01:25Sitting there having a down home good laugh over orange Kool-Aid get you in the midst of the most fabulous clothes and admiring all that she was and her honest and sincere woman in full self.
01:39Then there was the shoot. We were stationed that day out near Malibu, took the long drive up Pacific Coast Highway.
01:49There's only one way. And when she got there, she said, you know, there's a real place across the highway and I'm ready for some.
01:57Well, we were going to shoot them on the beach in natural light and the California sun goes down fast any more than anywhere in the world.
02:05But there I went running across the highway to get the Queen of Soul some ribs.
02:10Well, she enjoyed those ribs. We got a cover that I'll forever cherish.
02:15And she was so thankful. I have to tell you, I earned my chops that day.
02:20But am I glad I did? You better believe it. Rest in soul. Rest in peace, Queen of Soul.
02:28My heart's love and respect.
03:10I'm Nikki Gilbert Daniels and Aretha Franklin has played such an important role in my life
03:38and career. Being from Detroit, seeing a woman with a strong voice, with a strong positive
03:44disposition, seeing a woman that's a little, you know, curvy here and there made me feel
03:49very, very confident as a young singer going out to pursue my dreams. The fact that she
03:54sang gospel, the fact that she sang jazz, the fact that she sang soul music truly makes
03:59her our queen. I can remember hearing my mom rehearse Aretha Franklin songs. If you want
04:04to do right all day, woman, you gotta be a do right all night man. What? Aretha Franklin,
04:24we love you. I'm so, so grateful for your influence on my career. Rest in peace. And please give
04:30my sister Maxie a big hug for me.
04:32Hey yo, peace world. What's going on? It's the Love King of R&B Raheem Devine here. I just
04:36want to take a brief moment to talk about a phenomenal woman, a strong woman, a queen,
04:42the queen of soul, the legendary Aretha Franklin. Thank you for all your contributions and what
04:48you, you know, gave to us as a, not only as music lovers, but as a, you know, God-fearing
04:55people. You know, you came out and were born in a time of injustice and, you know, racism
05:01and social class injustice. And, you know, you fought for that, not only in your music
05:07and spoke to that, not only in your music, but also, you know, off the stage. I'm so glad
05:13that I had the opportunity to meet you, you know, for the first time in 2009 and give
05:19you your roses while you were living and also receive those roses from you, you know, as
05:24mutual respect for one artist to another. What an honor, you know, it is to be able to now
05:30walk this planet and say, wow, Aretha Franklin used to perform my songs at her concerts. You
05:35will be deeply missed. Condolences to your family and the loved ones, as well as to all the
05:42fans that mourn you, but never forgotten, there'll only be one queen, one strong woman, woman,
05:49woman, known as Aretha Franklin, all right? Long live the queen, y'all. And, you know,
05:54I'm a firm believer. I kind of look at death, you know, differently than others. So let's
06:01celebrate, you know, it's a time of mourning, but let's celebrate the life, you know, globally
06:07the queen of soul, Aretha Franklin. Peace, y'all. I love King signing off. One.
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