Entertainment
Buckingham Palace Honors Aretha Franklin
The honor was made the same day Franklin was laid to rest.
D.G. Sciortino
09.09.18

Aretha Franklin’s talent touched many people throughout her career. And not just in the U.S. where she was born.

The Queen of Soul was beloved all around the world.

By people in both high and low places. Franklin’s music even enraptured some people who you wouldn’t think enjoy the funky sounds of soul music.

Boing Boing
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Boing Boing

International headlines report that the Queen of England made an unusual gesture just to honor Franklin after she passed away from pancreatic cancer on Aug. 16 at age 76.

The Queen of England honored the Queen of Soul by playing her hit “Respect” during the Changing of the Guard Ceremony on Friday.

The display took place on the morning ahead of Franklin’s funeral. Franklin’s 1967 hit was played by The Band of the Welsh Guards, Daily Mail reports.

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The Change of the Guard is when Queen Elizabeth II’s guards hand over responsibility for protecting the palace to a new set of guards.

The ceremony takes place several times a month outside Buckingham Palace.

Buckingham Palace will often use the Changing of the Guard as an opportunity to acknowledge world events or honor people around the world.

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For example, The Band of the Welsh played America’s National Anthem the day after the Sept. 11 Terrorist Attacks.

But it’s a bit unusual for them to honor an American singer.

A video of the performance was Tweeted by The Army in London’s Twitter account.

The Army in London
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The Army in London

“Respect for others underpins all we do in the @BritishArmy so it was no surprise that the @WelshGuardsBand paid tribute to musical icon and inspiration #ArethaFranklin at Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace today. @RoyalFamily #ArethaFranklinFuneral #RESPECT,” their tweet read.

New Yorker Chris Botta was visiting Buckingham Palace and witnessed Franklin’s tribute. He took a video of the honor and also Tweeted it.

“At Changing of Guard at Buckingham Palace this morning, Respect paid to Aretha Franklin,” he Tweeted.

During this time, Franklin was being laid to rest in her hometown of Detroit, Michigan.

Her gold plated casket arrived at the Greater Grace Temple in a white Cadillac LaSalle hearse that was also used in the funeral for civil rights activist Rosa Parks and Franklin’s father Minister CL Franklin.

JamBase
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JamBase

She was carried down a red carpet and dressed in a long gold dress.

Her body was taken to Woodlawn Ceremtary after the five-hour long ceremony where she was buried.

The service was a star-studded event described as a “spiritual awakening” with performances from Stevie Wonder, Ariana Grande, Jennifer Hudson, and Chaka Khan.

You can see the Army in London’s performance of “Respect” below.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

Source: The Army in London

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