The wait is almost over and Detroit will finally be able to see the movie many have been waiting for since last year... Respect. It’s a story about the life of Detroit’s own Aretha Franklin with Academy Award-Winner Jennifer Hudson belting out the hits of the Queen of Soul. To get you geared up for the movie, let’s celebrate some of her top hits. Did you know these facts about Aretha Franklin’s songs?
- Aretha Franklin won her first two Grammy Awards for Respect in 1967. They were for Best Rhythm & Blues Recording and Best Rhythm & Blues Solo Vocal Performance, Female
- Believe it or not, Aretha Franklin only had two Number 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 including Respect and I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me) a duet with George Michael
- The first song to ever chart on the Billboard Hot 100 for Aretha Franklin was Won’t Be Long which spent three weeks on the chart peaking at #76 in March of 1961
- The entire video for Aretha Franklin’s Freeway of Love was shot in Detroit and was one of the most popular videos of 1985
- Aretha Franklin’s hit song Think was re-recorded for the movie The Blues Brothers in 1980, which was Aretha’s first appearance in a movie. It’s the only one of her songs on the album. Think was Franklin’s 7th top 10 Billboard hit when it was originally released in 1968
- Of her 18 Grammy Awards, the last one won by Franklin was in 2007 for Best Gospel Performance for the song Never Gonna Break My Faith
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