Aretha Franklin makes history with posthumous Pulitzer win

Published 6:16 am Saturday, April 20, 2019

NEW YORK — Aretha Franklin is still getting R-E-S-P-E-C-T after death: The Queen of Soul received the Pulitzer Prize Special Citation honor Monday, becoming the first individual woman to earn a special citation prize since the honor was first awarded in 1930.

The Pulitzer board said the award was given to Franklin for “her indelible contribution to American music and culture for more than five decades.”

Franklin died on Aug. 16 at her home in Detroit from pancreatic cancer at age 76.

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The superstar musician was the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame when she entered the prestigious organization in 1987.