I don't have much to say -- kinda can't, because I'm a little choked up. But Aretha Franklin owned something no other singer could claim: not just a powerful, virtuosic, distinctive voice, but the ability to tap her emotions for real and project them straight into our hearts, so we felt what she felt. She was also a versatile musician who played piano with skill and natural ease. And just a good person.
Ms. Franklin granted me an interview for L.A. Weekly in 2004; read it here.