Aretha Franklin Exemplified How Black Musicians Can Use Their Influence To Support Movement Work

Aretha Franklin, “Queen of Soul” and the first woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, shattered boundaries not only as a musical artist but a politically outspoken figure for Black American liberation. She stood proudly with the activists of her time such as Martin Luther King Jr., Jesse Jackson, and Angela Davis, using her music and influence to champion a movement of equality, and making her voice one of the Civil Rights Era’s sounds of resistance. 

Like most forms of creative Black expression, Black music has often been policed and politicized for its ability to unite communities and express salient messages of unity and freedom. For this reason, many believe that Black artists have a great responsibility to speak to the times and material conditions of their community. As put by Sonia Sanchez, “The Black artist is dangerous. Black art controls the ‘Negro’s’ reality, negates negative influences, and creates positive images.” Through this lens, Black artists have a power to inspire our larger communities to dream beyond the circumstances we have been confined to. Choosing to step into this power poses a threat to the status quo, challenging oppressive systems. As a result, this act can also threaten the artist’s livelihood and safety, as many outspoken musicians such as Franklin have had to witness firsthand.

The Memphis-born, Detroit-raised singer was shaped by one of Black America’s foundational music traditions: gospel. Under the guidance of her father, Reverend Clarence L. Franklin, Aretha Franklin grew up in Detroit’s New Bethel Baptist Church, honing in on her craft, and touring with gospel singing groups until ultimately crossing over into secular music and launching her professional career. Through her upbringing she witnessed firsthand how church leaders like her father led and housed grassroot organizing efforts during the Civil Rights Movement, such as the peaceful 1963 Detroit Walk of Freedom which Dr. King spoke at, just weeks before his historic “I Have A Dream Speech” at the March on Washington.  

As Franklin’s career took off at a young age in the late ‘50s, so did tensions across racial groups in America, ultimately leading to the rise of organizations such as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), helmed by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Her father was a good friend and supporter of Dr. King, and, feeling inspired to do her part, Franklin began touring with Dr. King at the young age of 16, using her voice to further inspire his audiences. Through the 1960s and with commercial success after a 1967 record deal with Atlantic Records, Franklin garnered acclaim and monetary advancement, which she in turn used to support the movement. 

Through musical benefit concerts supporting the SCLC, direct monetary donations, and offering her own housing, she poured into the cause, sponsoring many of the members as they traveled and volunteered their time for the movement. That same year, among many other soon-to-be-hits,

Franklin released, “R.E.S.P.E.C.T.,” which went on to become her most popular song to-date and a theme song of sorts for the Black fight for dignity and equality.

Franklin’s use of her large platform to support the Civil Rights Movement and Black political leaders such as Angela Davis, made her a target of surveillance by the federal government, much like many other prominent Black figures and groups of the time. Through her affiliations with such groups, she started receiving backlash for her performances and appearances, posing increased threats for her safety and those around her. For about forty years starting in 1967, the FBI routinely tracked Franklin and her whereabouts in attempts to track potential ties to civil rights leaders, the Black Power Movement, Black Panther Party, and communist parties. Despite the public animosity and government scrutiny, Franklin stood firm in her support for the movement, offering to post bail for Angela Davis upon her 1970 arrest. 

To put this courageous act into context, the FBI’s surveillance of the popular artist was done in tandem with the infamous COINTELPRO operation, which ran from 1956 to 1971, for the purpose of squandering Black political figures such as Davis and other BPP members. The tactics of this operation ultimately incited the tensions that many believe led to the assassinations of Black Panther Party leaders John Huggins and Alprentice “Bunchy” Carter. During a time where Franklin could have easily used her fame and money to her own advantage, she continued to pour into the movement towards Black freedom in the United States.

An artist’s ability to influence the masses is not lost on the ruling class, as has been proven time and again by its treatment of said artists who choose to go against the grain. Franklin’s legacy lives on amongst a host of other artists who have stood up against oppression at great risk, including the great Nina Simone, who also used her artistry to uplift Black communities during the Civil Rights Era, at a time where militarized citizens and government agencies took it upon themselves to dispose of those they deemed to be troublemakers. 

Today, as society has advanced further into surveillance and widespread media attention, retaliation tactics are much more tied to capitalism and monetary security. Take for example, the way contemporary R&B artist Kehlani has been barred from several pre-booked performances, due to the artist’s outspoken stance against the war on Gaza. As times shift, the threat of the artist’s power remains. Artists such as the great Queen of Soul, and many who come after her, can play as pivotal of a role in the collective fight for liberation as political figures leading the charge.