Thursday, May 21, 2026

Happy Birthday Aretha Franklin, Queen of Soul, Still Reigning

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It’s Aretha Franklin’s birthday. She’s got a party in New York tonight, and then two dates in the tri-state area. She is still the Queen of Soul, with a catalog that shows her immense range and diversity as the greatest singer of our time. No one comes close to matching Franklin’s tone and delivery although there some amazing singers out there. No one working today will ever match what Franklin’s done in part because they simply don’t have the songs, the hits, the arrangements. There’s no “Respect” for Beyonce, or any of the others. How many of Aretha’s records just make you want to start dancing in your car, in your seat, down an aisle in the grocery store? Here are just a few gifts she’s given to us:

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Roger Friedman
Roger Friedmanhttps://www.showbiz411.com
Roger Friedman is the founder and editor-in-chief of Showbiz411. He wrote the FOX411 column on FoxNews.com from 1999 to 2009 and previously edited Fame magazine and wrote the "Intelligencer" column at New York magazine. His bylines have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the New York Daily News, the New York Post, Vogue, Details, and the Miami Herald. He is a voting member of the Critics Choice Awards (Film and Television branches), and his movie reviews are tracked by Rotten Tomatoes. is articles have appeared in dozens of publications over the years including New York Magazine, where he wrote the Intelligencer column in the mid 90s and covered the OJ Simpson trial, and Fox News (when it wasn't so crazy) where he covered Michael Jackson. With D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus, he co-produced the 2002 documentary "Only the Strong Survive," which screened at Directors' Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival.

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