Aretha Franklin tribute concert at Detroit's Chene Park
A tribute concert to the Queen of Soul was held Thursday in Detroit, part of a four-day memorial that will culminate in Aretha Franklin's funeral Friday at the city's Greater Grace Temple.
More than 40 artists performed at the concert, including Gladys Knight, the Four Tops, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Raheem DeVaughn, Johnny Gill and Angie Stone, accompanied by the Ralphe Armstrong Band and Kern Brantley Band, who have performed with Franklin before.
Tickets for the tribute sold out in less than six minutes, according to the Detroit Free Press. The sold-out concert is being held at Detroit's Chene Park Detroit Amphitheatre.
Show closes out with "Respect"
Smoke and confetti were dropped on stage as all the peformers joined together to perform Franklin's classic "Respect." The concert lasted about four hours.
Cherri Black performs "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman"
Detroit singer Cherri Black is singing Franklin's classic "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman." The 1967 song was written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin.
King told The New Yorker that she and Goffin, who were married at the time, wrote the song after producer Jerry Wexler pulled up in a limo, telling them to write a "really big hit for Aretha. How about writing a song called 'A Natural Woman?'" They wrote the song that night.
Angela Davis performs "Chain of Fools"
Detroit singer Angela Davis is singing "Chain of Fools," one of Franklin's classics. The 1967 single, written by Don Covay, reached #1 on the Billboard R&B charts.
Davis told the Detroit Free Press she performed for Franklin last year.
Jenifer Lewis performs "Thank You Aretha"
Actress Jenifer Lewis is singing "Thank You Aretha," which was written for Franklin. Tyler Perry introducted Lewis.
"Nobody can sing like Aretha Franklin," Lewis said. "Ain't nobody ever will!"
Ralphe Armstrong leads jazz tribute
The jazz set of the concert kicked off with Joan Belgrave singing "Dr. Feelgood." The tribute is being led by Ralphe Armstrong, who played bass for Franklin for 30 years.
Armstrong told Sky News after Franklin's death that she was a "great person."
"I'm going to miss her calling me up on Friday nights and saying 'What are you doing?' and 'What's new? What are you playing?'" Armstrong said.
Concert kicks off at 6:32 p.m.
Despite a scheduled start time of 6 p.m., fans were still trickling in after the scheduled start time. The concert got underway with a performance of "Ave Maria" just after 6:30 p.m.
Tribute concert — scheduled lineup
The show will have four segments, beginning with an jazz and blues tribute featuring Ralphe Armstrong, Franklin's bassist and longtime friend, as musical director. Joan Belgrave, Doug Carn, Jean Carne, Detroit's Thornetta Davis and Dee Dee Bridgewater will also perform.
In the second segment, a 25-person choir will perform a gospel tribute. Filmmaker Tyler Perry and the cast of "The Haves and Have Nots," and actress Jenifer Lewis will perform a piece she wrote for Franklin. Others who will appear during that segment include Santita Jackson, Dr. Bobby Jones, Randy Miles, Tasha Page-Lockhart and the Lisa McCaw Dancers.
Next up will be an R&B segment featuring Narada Michael Walden and Dave McMurray performing "Freeway of Love," a song Walden wrote for Franklin. Other artists in that set include Angela Davis, Kimmie Horne, Gwen Foxx, Z, Beth Griffith and the George Faison Dancers, Cherri Black and Tasha Page-Lockhart
The fourth segment will include performances by Regina Belle, Keith Washington, Angie Stone, Johnny Gill and the Four Tops.
The evening is slated to end with all the performers singing Franklin's signature song "R.E.S.P.E.C.T."
Franklin's casket moved from museum that hosted viewings
Aretha Franklin's body has been transported from a Detroit museum that hosted two days of public viewings of the Queen of Soul, the next step in a journey leading up to her funeral on Friday.
Workers carefully moved Franklin's polished bronze casket from the rotunda of the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History and loaded it in to a 1940 Cadillac LaSalle hearse.
Journalists from The Associated Press were allowed to document the casket's movement Wednesday night after the public viewing concluded. Wednesday's viewing attracted thousands of fans and mourners from around the country.
A viewing at New Bethel Baptist Church on Thursday provided the public another opportunity to pay their respects to the late Queen of Soul.Franklin's invitation-only funeral will be held Friday at the Greater Grace Temple.