Aretha Franklin has been busy, very busy. When she’s not racking up honorary degrees, the latest having recently been awarded at Harvard University’s commencement ceremony, where she was honored along with former New York mayor, Michael Bloomberg, she’s working with young people to hone their musical talents or developing new collaborations with long-time friend and producer Clive Davis.
The Queen of Soul continues to knock them dead everywhere she goes, which is remarkable after more than four decades in the music business. Franklin, unlike so many artists who rely on their milieu of past hits to sustain a career, continues to grow her already voluminous repertoire with more songs that are no doubt destined to become classics with increasingly younger audiences.
Franklin’s cross-generational appeal is attracting contemporary hit-makers like Grammy Award-winning producers Andre 3000 and Kenneth “Baby Face” Edmonds, who jumped at the opprtunity to work with her on her latest project, due to be released in September 2014. Franklin says the new album, which fans will have a chance to hear select tracks from at her July 12 DTE Energy Theater concert, featuring mainstay R&B classics, some hers and some previously recorded by other music greats, but all with the mark of the Queen.
Franklin, who was all aglow following two more stellar concert performances at Radio City in New York, admitted to having taken time for a little R&R with friends, demonstrating another of the qualities which many find so endearing about the diva from Detroit — her commitment to her hometown.
“Oh what a night, what a night it was in New York. Wow,” Franklin beamed in an exclusive interview with the Michigan Chronicle. “But after leaving New York, I went down to Atlantic City and had a beach party, and there were a lot of friends from Detroit at the party. My friends JoAnne Watson and Brenda Lawrence were there. [Judge] Greg Mathis was there, as well as Donna Joyner … and there were just a lot of cool people from Detroit who joined me for our little soiree. We sat by the sea shore and soaked up the sun.”
And if that’s not enough to validate her love for Detroit, besides the fact that she still resides in Detroit, Franklin will perform at the DTE Energy Theater on July 12 to serenade the locals and bring her special brand of energy to the popular outdoor music venue. “I don’t tour anymore, but I do have select dates. However, on July 12, we are going to have a rock ‘em sock ‘em night. I’m going to sing as many hits as I can sing in an hour and fifty minutes, but there will be some new things you haven’t heard. And then there are going to be some surprises in the show, but I can’t tell you what they are.” Although, speculators are hoping to hear cuts from the new Babyface-produced album and maybe hints of one or more of the four Andre 3000 produced songs.
Franklin did offer that fans can expect to hear renditions of classics from other greats including: “Midnight Train to Georgia” (Gladys Knight); “The Last Dance” (Donna Summer); “People” (Barbara Streisand); “Rolling in the Deep” (Adele), and “What’s Love Got to Do With It” (Tina Turner), and more on the new CD.
And who’s on the Queen of Soul’s playlist? “Well the Four Tops are my faves, and I like the Clark Sisters … Karen [Clark] has appeared with me several times at DTE. I like Jennifer Hudson, and of course Smokey Robinson. I also enjoy hearing Minister Donald Parsons and I really like Michael Dyson, even though he is not a musical artist, I really like him,” explained Franklin who added “I am definitely old-school, but I like progressive as well.”
So it appears that the undisputed Queen of Soul’s capacity to deliver great performances for her ever-growing fan base is boundless. “It’s my love of music and my loyal fans that account for much of my longevity in this business. My objective is just to give people the best,” concluded Franklin.
So whether it’s the Clive Davis inspired collaboration with Babyface and Andre 3000, or the anticipation building around her upcoming performance at Detroit’s world-class DTE Energy Theater, one thing fans can know for sure is that this queen will continue her reign in supreme fashion … just as we thought.
For more information on Aretha Franklin’s DTE performance on July 12 visit dteenergy.eventticketscenter.com
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