How much was Aretha Franklin worth?
| Net Worth: | $85 Million |
|---|---|
| Profession: | Professional Singer |
| Date of Birth: | March 25, 1942 (aged 76) |
| Country: | United States of America |
| Height: | 1.65 m |
About Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin born March 25, 1942 was an American singer, songwriter, actress, pianist, and civil rights activist with an estimated net worth of $85 million. While originally from Memphis, Tennessee the daughter of Barbara and CL Franklin, when she was 4, her parents moved the family to Detroit, Michigan. She was raised there by her father, a Baptist minister, and gospel singer mother. Aretha grew up in the church, which is where she learned to sing and play the piano. By the time she was 12, she was already a church soloist, and when she was 14, her debut Gospel album, Songs of Faith, was recorded in her father’s church and independently released in 1956. After she turned 18, Aretha signed with the Columbia Records label.
Between 1961 and 1967, Columbia Records released 11 Aretha albums, including two compilations. She had a number of minor pop and Gospel hits during this period, but it was when she left Columbia for Atlantic Records that her career took off. The 12 years she spent on Atlantic were the most successful ones of her career. From 1967 to 1979, Aretha generated a number of hit R&B; and Soul songs, including “Respect” and “Chain of Fools” in 1967; “Think” (1968); “Rock Steady (1971); and “Something He Can Feel” in 1976. She also won 10 Grammys during this time span.
As her success declined in the late 1970s, Aretha leaving Atlantic Records and signed with Arista Records. Her sound then began to evolve from ’70s Soul to ’80s synth, glossy pop songs like 1982’s “Jump to It” and 1985’s “Freeway of Love” and “Sisters are Doin’ It for Themselves,” with singer Annie Lennox are examples of how her music had changed and evolved. She also had some minor hits in the 1990s, most notably 1998’s “A Rose is Still a Rose,” a hip-hop track written and produced by Lauryn Hill. She stayed with Arista for 23 years, but parted ways in 2003.
In 2009, Franklin made international headlines for performing “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee” at President Barack Obama’s inaugural ceremony with her church hat becoming a popular topic online.
During her life, Aretha married twice. The first marriage was to her personal manager, Ted White, from 1961 to 1969. She was then married to actor Glynn Turman from April 1978 to February 1984.
She also had four children. The first was Clarence Franklin, whom Aretha gave birth to when she was 14 and named after her father, the Rev. CL Franklin. Next came Edward Franklin, whom she also gave birth to while in her teens. In 1964, Ted White Jr., her son with her first husband, was born. Her youngest son, who was born in 1970, is Kecalf Cunningham. He is Aretha’s son with her former road manager, Ken Cunningham.
In August 2018, Franklin became ill at her home in Riverfront Towers, Detroit. She was under constant care and Stevie Wonder, Jesse Jackson and ex-husband Glynn Turman visited her on her deathbed. Franklin died at her home on August 16, 2018, aged 76, without a will.
At the time of her death in 2018, Aretha Franklin’s net worth was $85 million.
Many artists paid tribute to Aretha at her memorial service, including Ariana Grande, Bill Clinton, Rev. Al Sharpton, Louis Farrakhan, Faith Hill, Fantasia, The Clark Sisters, Ronald Isley, Angie Stone, Chaka Khan, Jennifer Holliday, Loretta Devine, Jennifer Hudson, Queen Latifah, Shirley Caesar, Stevie Wonder, Eric Holder, Gladys Knight, Cedric the Entertainer, Tyler Perry, Smokey Robinson, and Yolanda Adams.
