The singer was diagnosed with cancer eight years ago
Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, has died at age 76. The information was released by a representative of the singer to the Associated Press, along with a statement from her family.
Diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2010, the singer passed away at her home in Detroit at 9:50 a.m. (8:50 a.m. Brasília time). "In one of the saddest moments of our lives, we have no words to express the pain in our hearts. We have lost our matriarch, the rock of our family," the statement said.
Aretha Louise Franklin was born in Memphis, Tennessee, on March 25, 1942, and at the age of 14 she recorded her first album in her father's church.
Despite starting her career in gospel music, Franklin quickly became one of the greatest and best voices in American blues and soul, a reference for artists such as Beyoncé, Whitney Houston , and Adele .
Rest in peace, Aretha Franklin.
