Nicki Minaj, Lauryn Hill, and Missy Elliott are among a slew of celebrities sharing their reaction to Aretha Franklin’s death.
The music icon and queen of soul died on Thursday, August 16, 2018, from advance pancreatic cancer. Aretha Franklin died at her home in Detroit surrounded by family and friends. “It is with deep and profound sadness that we announce the passing of Aretha Louise Franklin, the Queen of Soul,” her publicist, Gwendolyn Quinn, said in a statement.
“Rest In Peace to our Queen of Soul. Her contribution to music and to the empowerment and enrichment of our hearts, Spirits and souls is immeasurable,” Lauryn Hill wrote on Twitter. “Thank you Ms. Aretha Franklin for sharing your anointed gifts with us. They changed the world. We are deeply grateful!”
“Rest easy Aretha Franklin I imagine u in heaven performing & still making people souls move this was my aunt favorite record #RockSteady you will always be the Queen of Soul you been that before many of us were born! Thank you for giving us LEGENDARY TIMELESS music,” Missy Elliott tweeted.
“R.I.P. To the one & only. QUEEN. ARETHA,” Nicki Minaj wrote on her Instagram.
Mariah Carey also shared her reaction writing, “Aretha Franklin. The Queen of Soul. The Icon. The ultimate singers’ singer. The greatest singer and musician of my lifetime. The power of your voice in music and in civil rights blew open the door for me and so many others. You were my inspiration, my mentor and my friend.”
Aretha Franklin. The Queen of Soul. The Icon. The ultimate singers' singer. The greatest singer and musician of my lifetime. The power of your voice in music and in civil rights blew open the door for me and so many others. You were my inspiration, my mentor and my friend. pic.twitter.com/YDQL2zzgdM
— Mariah Carey (@MariahCarey) August 16, 2018
Rest easy #ARETHAFRANKLIN I imagine u in heaven performing & still making people souls move?? this was my aunt favorite record #RockSteady you will always be the Queen of Soul you been that before many of us were born! Thank you for giving us LEGENDARY TIMELESS music ???? pic.twitter.com/bEueBCLGJ9
— Missy Elliott (@MissyElliott) August 16, 2018
Rest In Peace to our Queen of Soul. Her contribution to music and to the empowerment and enrichment of our hearts, Spirits and souls is immeasurable.
Thank you Ms. Aretha Franklin for sharing your anointed gifts with us. They changed the world. We are deeply grateful!??MLH
— Ms. Lauryn Hill (@MsLaurynHill) August 16, 2018
“this morning we lost an icon a legend a voice a musician an activist: her soul lives on may you sleep in heavenly peace ms. franklin ” ?? pic.twitter.com/7VQumNBa0R
— MAXWELL (@_MAXWELL_) August 16, 2018
I'm saddened to learn that Aretha Franklin has passed.The most soulful and inspirational singer of our time. / Je suis attristée d'apprendre le décès d’Aretha Franklin. La chanteuse la plus inspirante de notre époque. – Céline xx…
? : Kevin Mazur https://t.co/3Tz7G2W205 pic.twitter.com/Q5DtmJ1IVa— Celine Dion (@celinedion) August 16, 2018
I’m sitting in prayer for the wonderful golden spirit Aretha Franklin.
— Ms. Ross (@DianaRoss) August 16, 2018
Salute to the Queen. The greatest vocalist I've ever known. ?????????? #Aretha
— John Legend (@johnlegend) August 16, 2018
This photo was taken in 2012 when Aretha & I performed at a tribute celebration for our friend Marvin Hamlisch. It’s difficult to conceive of a world without her. Not only was she a uniquely brilliant singer,but her commitment to civil rights made an indelible impact on the world pic.twitter.com/Px9zVB90MM
— Barbra Streisand (@BarbraStreisand) August 16, 2018
This is the face of a young man who couldn't believe he was actually singing with the GREATEST OF ALL TIME. Thank you, Ms. Franklin for blessing us with your incomparable gift. Honored to have shared the stage with you even for a moment. Always bowing down to you. #QueenofSoul pic.twitter.com/4bZVAWcqeS
— Justin Timberlake (@jtimberlake) August 16, 2018
Aretha helped define the American experience. In her voice, we could feel our history, all of it and in every shade—our power and our pain, our darkness and our light, our quest for redemption and our hard-won respect. May the Queen of Soul rest in eternal peace. pic.twitter.com/bfASqKlLc5
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) August 16, 2018
