On Monday, the city of Detroit began a week-long celebration of the life of the late Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin. The series of events includes tributes from famed musicians and political figures who knew Franklin well.
Aretha Franklin was an icon in gospel and pop music, the civil rights movement and in political circles.
That’s coalescing into a week featuring two all-star concerts, 2-and-a-half days of her body lying in honor for a public visitation, and an invitation-only funeral Friday that includes musicians Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson as well as former President Bill Clinton.
Church officials say the funeral at Detroit’s Greater Grace Temple which holds about 4-thousand people will likely be as large and long as the one held for civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks in 2005.
