Aretha Franklin, ‘Queen of Soul,’ is ‘gravely ill’ in hospital, reports Detroit media

Family members of the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, have told Detroit media that she has become “gravely ill.”

“I spoke with her family members this morning. She is asking for your prayers at this time,” Evrod Cassimy, anchor of WDIV-TV in Detroit, tweeted on Monday.

News of the iconic singer’s ill health touched off a flood of support and good wishes on social media Monday.

According to the Detroit Free Press, Franklin most recently performed Nov. 2, 2017 at the Elton John AIDS Foundation in New York. Her last public appearance was in Philadelphia a year ago. She canceled two March concerts in New Jersey, the newspaper reported.

Entertainment reporter Roger Friedman of Showbiz 411 reported on Sunday that Franklin was ill.

“Originally diagnosed with cancer in 2010, Aretha, who turned 76 in March, bravely battled back and refused to be knocked out by illness,” Friedman wrote. “Aretha is surrounded by family and people close to her.”

Franklin has strong ties to Detroit. She was born in Memphis, Tennessee in 1942 but moved to Detroit by the age of 4, according to the Free Press.

“My roots are there. The church is there. My family is there,” she told the newspaper in 2011. “I like the camaraderie in Detroit, how we’ll rally behind something that’s really worthy and come to each other’s assistance.”

This story was originally published August 13, 2018 at 8:57 AM.