More People Should Know That Aretha Franklin's Final Resting Place Is Found Right Here In Michigan
By Andrea Verschuyl|Published January 10, 2024
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Andrea Verschuyl
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Having grown up in Washington, Andrea is a self-admitted Pacific Northwest snob. In their opinion, there's simply nowhere else in the country with the Evergreen State's beauty. After attending university, Andrea devoted themselves to writing full-time. They're thrilled to represent Washington for Only In Your State while pursuing other professional and personal projects. They currently reside in Olympia, where they enjoy leaf-blowing their yard, perfecting homemade ramen, cuddling with their three tiny dogs, and feeding their pufferfish, Sea Biscuit.
In the landscape of American music, few figures feature so prominently as Aretha Franklin, whose artistry has made her an enduring icon of soul. If you’d like to learn more about her career and the cultural zeitgeist in which she rose to fame, start by visiting Detroit, where you can pay your respects at Aretha Franklin’s grave in Michigan.
Though she was born in Tennessee, Franklin moved to Detroit when she was five with her mother and Baptist minister father. There, young Aretha grew up immersed in church music, even teaching herself to play piano at just 10 years old.
From the start, Franklin's immense talent was obvious. When her father became a circuit preacher, he brought Franklin with him, arranging performances for her at churches across the country. She was only 12. In this early chapter of her life, it seemed that success begot success, and Franklin had signed a record deal and recorded her first album by the time she turned 14. Still, the best was yet to come.
Though she never signed with Detroit's famous record company, Motown Records, this ground-breaking business, founded by Berry Gordy in 1959, was a crucial part of the country's music culture during the period Franklin rose to fame.
Similarly, the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History has a permanent exhibit celebrating the outsized influence of Motor City on contemporary pop culture. Its other exhibits provide an incisive look at the Black experience in America, helping put these artistic contributions into meaningful context.
Here, in Woodlawns' beautiful 140-acre grounds, Franklin's tomb has become a place of pilgrimage for music lovers worldwide. If you choose to visit, remember that this cemetery is the final resting place of many, all of whom deserve your respect.
Few individuals have left such an indelible mark on our culture as Aretha Franklin. Her consummate artistry changed music forever, immortalizing her as "the Queen of Soul."
If you want to learn more about the Queen of Soul, there’s nowhere better to visit than Detroit, where you can visit Aretha Franklin’s grave in Michigan and explore the city that cultivated her enormous talent.
If you’re from out of town, consider extending your stay to learn more about Motor City’s contribution to American music.
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