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In the wake of news that Aretha Franklin is seriously ill, many prominent music figures have paid their respects to the legendary singer. And with Franklin reportedly being surrounded by loved ones in her hometown of Detroit, it’s only fitting that Beyoncé and Jay-Z shared their own tribute to the Queen of Soul during Monday night’s “On the Run II” stop in Motor City.
As the Detroit Free Press reports, the couple opened their Aug. 13 concert at Detroit’s Ford Field by announcing that it was dedicated to Franklin.
“We love you,” Beyoncé said, adding a word of thanks for “the beautiful music.”
Opening act DJ Khaled also paid homage to Franklin, treating the crowd to a clip of what is arguably the 76-year-old singer’s best-known hit, 1967’s “Respect.” He reportedly told concertgoers to “make some noise for Aretha Franklin” and offered his thoughts and prayers.
Beyoncé has a bit of history with Franklin, who publicly admonished her in 2008 after the pop star referred to fellow singer Tina Turner as “the queen” during a Grammys tribute.
“I am not sure of whose toes I may have stepped on or whose ego I may have bruised between the Grammy writers and Beyoncé,” Franklin said in a statement at the time. “However, I dismissed it as a cheap shot for controversy.”
But there were no hard feelings by 2013, when Franklin defended Beyoncé for lip-syncing during her performance at President Barack Obama’s second inauguration. The music legend praised the “beautiful job” in an interview with ABC News.
