Entertainment News: aretha franklin

Aretha Franklin recently gave her opinion on Beyonce's performance of the national anthem at President Barack Obama's inauguration on Monday, January 21, and Franklin said Beyonce did "a beautiful job" but she found the alleged lip-synching incident funny.

Beyonce stirred controversy on Tuesday, January 21, when a spokesperson for the U.S. Marine Band said her performance was pre-recorded. Beyonce has not commented on the matter.

Aretha Franklin can now go by "Dr. Queen of Soul." The singer received an honorary Doctorate of Music degree from Princeton University on June 5.

Franklin received the degree during the school's 26th commencement, according to NJ.com. She was one of five people to receive an honorary degree during the ceremony and other honorees included Joseph Taylor, a Nobel Prize-winning physics professor and Peter Carril, who coached the Princeton's men's basketball team for 29 seasons.

Aretha Franklin celebrated her 70th birthday in New York on Saturday with ex-fiancé William Wilkerson and music producer Clive Davis.

The music legend announced at the celebration, which was held the day before her actual birthday on March 25, that she planned to reunite with her musical mentor to produce some new music.

See photos of Aretha Franklin's 70th birthday party, which took place in New York on March 24, 2012.

Guests included the singer's former fiance and current boyfriend William Wilkerson, Al Sharpton, Clive Davis and Diane Sawyer.

Aretha Franklin is clearing up remarks she made about Whitney Houston's upbringing by Cissy Houston which were misinterpreted by the media, according to the singing legend.

Franklin issued a statement on February 22 about an interview she gave about Whitney Houston on "The Today Show" last week. At the time, Al Rocker asked Franklin about Houston's life in the spotlight.

Aretha Franklin was not able to attend Whitney Houston's memorial service on February 18 and the legendary singer cited health issues in a statement as the reason for her absence.

"Regretfully, I am so sorry that I was unable to be with you at Whitney's service today," Franklin said in a statement obtained by OnTheRedCarpet on February 18. "I had every intention of being there. But unfortunately I had terrible leg spasms and locked leg muscles until 4:00AM this morning following my concert last night [Friday], which I've been having for the last few days."

Whitney Houston is set to be laid to rest on Saturday, February 18, following a star-studded funeral at a New Jersey church where she showcased her singing skills as a child.

Kevin Costner is set to appear at Whitney Houston's funeral to pay his respects to his former "Bodyguard" co-star.

He joins celebrities such as Mel Gibson and Aretha Franklin who are on the guest list of the largely private memorial service, set to take place on Saturday, February 18, at 12 p.m. ET (9 a.m. PT) at the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey, where the 48-year-old singer had first showcased her singing skills publicly as a child (watch a live stream of Whitney Houston's funeral on OnTheRedCarpet.com).

Aretha Franklin has officially called off her engagement to longtime friend William "Willie" Wilkerson, the singer said in a statement on January 23, according to the Associated Press.

Franklin said in a statement, "Will and I have decided we were moving a little too fast, and there were a number of things that had not been thought through thoroughly. There will be no wedding at this time."

She is declining to comment further on the matter because of "the very personal and sensitive nature of it."

It is unclear if the two are still a couple.

Aretha Franklin got engaged to her longtime friend, William "Willie" Wilkerson over the holidays, she confirmed on Monday.

Franklin told the Associated Press that she and Wilkerson are planning a summer wedding in Miami Beach, Fla. with a reception on a private yacht and joked to the wire service, "We're looking at June or July for our date and no, I'm not pregnant, LOL!"

Adele, a 22-year-old British singer and Grammy winner, recently covered Aretha Franklin's hit 1967 song "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" for a VH1 concert.

The gig, "Adele's VH1 Unplugged," is set to air on the music channel on March 4 at 11 p.m. ET and premiere online a day earlier on the station's website. Check out a video of Adele performing "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" from the concert below.

Aretha Franklin is set to perform again in May, marking her first concerts since she underwent surgery for a mysterious ailment in December.

The "Queen of Soul," who turns 69 on Thursday, March 25, will take the stage at the Chicago Theatre on May 19. Franklin is also set to sing at the Seneca Niagara Casino in Niagara Falls, New York on May 28.

Aretha Franklin says that her slimmer figure is not because she secretly had gastric bypass surgery.

The legendary singer shot down other rumors about her health, including that she was suffering from pancreatic cancer, in an upcoming interview with Access Hollywood, set to air on March 18.

Aretha Franklin says she lost 85 pounds and was once "entirely too fat for words," two months after she underwent surgery for a mysterious ailment.

Aretha, the 68-year-old "Queen of Soul," made her comments in a television interview on "The Wendy Williams Show" on Wednesday, March 2.