Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Quincy Jones, Gladys Knight & More Pay Respect to Aretha Franklin [Tweets]

Photo Credit: Mark Wilson/Getty

Early this morning (August 16, 2018) news broke that the legendary singer/musician Aretha Franklin passed away at the age of 76 after a long battle with cancer.  Celebrities from everywhere took to social media to pay their respects to the “Queen of Soul.”

Portrait of American soul singer Aretha Franklin as she wears a strapless dress and pearl necklace and has her hair in a bun, 1977
(Photo Credit: Hulton Archives/Getty)

Former President Barack Obama shared a heartfelt message on Twitter:

“Aretha helped define the American experience. In her voice, we could feel our history, all of it and in every shade – our power and our pain, our darkness and our light, our quest for redemption and our hard-won respect. May the Queen of Soul rest in eternal peace.”

Usher, Toni Braxton, Quincy Jones, Gladys Knight, Oprah Winfrey and more stars shared some kind words. Read their tweets below.