Aretha Franklin is retiring later this year after she releases one more album. Her last album is tentatively scheduled to be released in September. It will have some original tracks on it produced by Stevie Wonder. Franklin confirmed that 2017 will also be her last year to perform live concerts. She is not accepting any more concert dates, but she already has some booked through June. After retiring, the soul singer will still do some select things that won't take up a lot of her time. The reason for the 74-year-old singer's decision is a very good one.
She plans to spend more time with her grandchildren.
Aretha Franklin's legacy
Aretha Franklin is known as the Queen of Soul and her career dates back to 1956. She says she is very satisfied with the way her life and career have gone, and she is ready to step back now. During her career of more than 50 years, the singer recorded many popular hits, including "Respect" and "Think." She received many honors and awards over the years, and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2005, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom that is only given to a select group of people who have contributed to the community.
Honors and awards
Of all the honors and awards Franklin received, the one she considers to have been a historical milestone in her career was when she sang "My Country 'Tis of Thee" on January 20, 2009 when Barack Obama became the 44th President of the United States.
She wore a gray coat and hat because it was on a very cold day outside the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. Her hat received so many compliments that she was invited to donate it to a museum.
Franklin has won 18 Grammy awards and sold more than 75 million records. She sang at three presidential inaugurations. Other than Obama's inauguration, she also sang at the inaugurations of Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton.
The queen of soul will go down in history for having influenced many other musicians. Since she has been singing for most of her life, fans are finding it hard to believe that she is really going to retire, even though that's what she is saying now.
