Quotes from Aretha Franklin

R&B is not a fad; it's the truth.

The duet with Frank Sinatra, 'What Now My Love,' is one of my favorites.

I sing to the realists; people who accept it like it is.

There's a lot of great singers out here.

I loved going to church. I enjoyed being a part of the choir and just doing things in and around the church. But as a young girl, I certainly enjoyed watching and listening to my dad.

'Rocking With Leroy' used to come on when I would come in from school. It was a very, very big R&B broadcast of the day when I was a young girl. And I would come in and put my books down, lie down on the floor, and listen to 'Rocking With Leroy.'

My upbringing was in the church. We had to attend regularly. And, of course, the church provided a training ground for me, so to speak, as a young vocalist and certainly gave me all of the spiritual values that I needed as a young lady.

I go to the healthier foods that are less chemically treated. I am drinking lots of water to get rid of the toxins in my body. It's a natural flushing. Water flushes your system and is also very good for your skin.

I saw the Supremes when they were still singing in little black skirts and white blouses.

I think it would be a far greater world if people were kinder and more respectful to each other.

The term 'Sock it to me!' was a big, big thing in our neighborhood - all the kids were saying it.

For many years, I've wanted to do one, and I've always mentioned it to the chieftains, and they would say things like, 'Oh well. Christmas albums don't sell,' and things like that. But that's not the point. Christmas albums are important. The music is important. The season is important.

As a parent you try to maintain a certain amount of control and so you have this tug-of-war ... You have to learn when to let go. And that's not easy.

Sometimes, what you're looking for is already there.

I'm not ever going to retire. That's - that wouldn't be good, for one, just to go somewhere and sit down and do nothing. Please. No, that's not moi.

My American audiences are pretty mixed. I get all sorts of people, old and young. It's nice.

Many of my friends were there at Motown. The studio was only a few blocks from where my dad's home was, where we lived.

I just got into Mike Tyson. My security people kept saying, 'Haven't you seen him yet?' Well, I finally did, and he's got a real knockout punch.

The man who gets me is getting one hell of a woman.

I just loved working with George Benson, whom I very much enjoy musically and as a person.

My generation, we came along, we had to really know our craft.

Women have broken through the glass ceiling, and they're now more and more in the power seats.

I'm the lady next door when I'm not on stage.

In terms of helping people understand and know each other a little better, music is universal - universal and transporting.