Legendary soul singer Aretha Franklin has passed away aged 76.
Franklin had been in the news earlier this week as it emerged she was hospitalized and gravely ill, and has subsequently passed on.
Dubbed the ‘queen of soul’, Franklin has been battling for her life since 2010 when she was diagnosed with a tumour, eventually succumbing to advanced pancreatic cancer.
An all time great, Franklin sold more than 75m records in her lifetime and won 18 Grammy awards. She garnered an impressive 77 entries on the US Billboard Hot 100 Chart and 20 No 1 singles on the R&B chart.
She is remembered for classic hits such as ‘A Natural Woman’ and I Knew You Were Waiting’. A trailblazer her entire life, she was the first woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Franklin is survived by four children. May she rest in peace.