Aretha Franklin’s funeral will be a star-studded musical affair: Stevie Wonder, Faith Hill, Ronald Isley, Chaka Khan and Jennifer Hudson are among the singers who will perform at the Aug. 31 service in Detroit.
Fantasia, Yolanda Adams, Shirley Caesar, the Clark Sisters and Jennifer Holliday are also on tap to perform, Franklin’s family announced Thursday. The full list of 19 performers is below.
Franklin’s funeral will be at 10 a.m. Aug. 31 at Greater Grace Temple in Detroit. It is expected to draw a host of dignitaries and celebrities from across the entertainment spectrum.
Many of the singers enlisted for the funeral were longtime friends and collaborators with Franklin, who died Aug. 16.
Jennifer Hudson, for instance, is the singer-actress handpicked by Franklin for her upcoming biopic.
Faith Hill recorded a duet with Franklin for 2011’s “A Woman Falling Out of Love” (though the track did not make the record), while she and husband Tim McGraw have been opening their recent concerts with a cover of “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me).”
Detroit gospel star Karen Clark-Sheard and R&B veteran Ronald Isley were also duet partners with Franklin on the 2011 album.
Iconic Motown star Stevie Wonder was close to Franklin going back to the 1960s, and he was among the final guests to visit with her in the days before her death at home in Detroit.
Bishop Charles H. Ellis III of Greater Grace will officiate the service, with the Rev. Robert Smith Jr. of Detroit’s New Bethel Baptist Church as co-officiant. The eulogy will be delivered by the Rev. Jasper Williams Jr. of Atlanta’s Salem Baptist Church.
At this point, the funeral is private, but some public seating ultimately may be made available.
Singers scheduled for Aretha Franklin’s funeral
Stevie Wonder
Faith Hill
Ronald Isley
Chaka Khan
Fantasia
Jennifer Hudson
Yolanda Adams
Shirley Caesar
The Clark Sisters
Jennifer Holliday
Tasha Cobbs-Leonard
Marvin Sapp
The Williams Brothers
Vanessa Bell Armstrong
Audrey DuBois Harris
Alice McAllister Tillman
Edward Franklin
Aretha Franklin Orchestra
Aretha Franklin Celebration Choir
