--- description: Aretha Franklin is one of the leaders, innovators, activists, entertainers, athletes and artists who defined the last century. title: Aretha Franklin: 100 Women of the Year image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt66a04bed7c7ada12/698a0aeddb2987ddb2265028/social-1968_Aretha-Franklin.jpg?branch=production --- * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 1968: Aretha Franklin ## Video: FIRSTS Aretha Franklin [Watch (HLS stream): FIRSTS Aretha Franklin](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/bRK5VWpS.m3u8) (1:54)  _Published 2017-09-02. Aretha Franklin is the FIRST woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame._ Mar 5, 2020 11:38 AM CUT  Runway Manhattan/Reuters by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 5, 2020 11:38 AM CUT R&B may be the secular child of gospel music, but in [Aretha Franklin’](https://time.com/longform/aretha-franklin-photos/ "undefined")s voice the two styles entwined in heavenly perfection: [every note she sang](https://time.com/5365484/aretha-franklin-time-cover/ "undefined") felt sacred and sublime. Franklin, born in 1942, began singing gospel as a child in her father’s Detroit church and, at 18, signed with Columbia Records. But it was her move to Atlantic Records, in 1967, that ignited her career. Franklin released three albums in 1968: [_Lady Soul_](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07TSFSRCM/ref=as%5Fli%5Fqf%5Fasin%5Fil%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=time037-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B07TSFSRCM&linkId=47e509ffaa33ec1f728fd0ae467fdaf0 "undefined")_,_ appearing in January, included “Chain of Fools,” a dis aimed at an ex-lover that could also be read as an excoriation of people who would follow blindly rather than lead. Summer saw the release of [_Aretha Now_](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00000331L/ref=as%5Fli%5Fqf%5Fasin%5Fil%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=time037-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B00000331L&linkId=12829621011e99bcc1676bc8c9770823 "undefined")_;_ on that album’s “Think,” Franklin turned the words “Freedom, oh freedom!” into a defiant chant, an insistence on [forward movement at all costs](https://time.com/5369587/aretha-franklin-civil-rights/ "undefined"). That song—that whole album—was a salve for a torn nation: between the release of _Lady Soul_ and _Aretha Now,_ the [assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.](https://time.com/5221565/martin-luther-king-last-campaign/ "undefined") opened up a wound in the country that has never fully healed. Franklin capped off the year with a live album, and her career continued to climb. But 1968 was when we needed her most. She more than delivered. _—Stephanie Zacharek_ --- _This article is part of_ [_100 Women of the Year_](https://time.com/100-women-of-the-year/ "undefined")_, TIME’s list of the most influential women of the past century. Read more_ [_about the project_](https://time.com/5793734/time-100-women-of-the-year-issue/ "undefined")_, explore the_ [_100 covers_](https://time.com/5793732/time-100-women-of-the-year-covers/ "undefined") _and sign up for our_ [_Inside TIME newsletter_](https://cloud.newsletters.time.com/newsletters?newsletter%5Fname=INSIDE%5FTIME&source=article-woy-footer "undefined") _for more._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5793627/aretha-franklin-100-women-of-the-year/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5793627/aretha-franklin-100-women-of-the-year/"},"headline":"1968: Aretha Franklin","datePublished":"2020-03-05T11:38:03.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T08:21:12.865Z","description":"Aretha Franklin is one of the leaders, innovators, activists, entertainers, athletes and artists who defined the last century.","url":"https://time.com/5793627/aretha-franklin-100-women-of-the-year/","keywords":["Women of the Year"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt66a04bed7c7ada12/698a0aeddb2987ddb2265028/social-1968_Aretha-Franklin.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt66a04bed7c7ada12/698a0aeddb2987ddb2265028/social-1968_Aretha-Franklin.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"SOCIAL - Women of the Year: 1968_Aretha-Franklin","caption":"","creditText":"","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5793627/aretha-franklin-100-women-of-the-year/","name":"1968: Aretha Franklin"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"FIRSTS Aretha Franklin","description":"Aretha Franklin is the FIRST woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/bRK5VWpS/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2017-09-02T02:55:00.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/bRK5VWpS.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5793627/aretha-franklin-100-women-of-the-year/","duration":"PT1M54S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5793627/aretha-franklin-100-women-of-the-year/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```