Over 100 pink Cadillacs were parked on Seven Mile Road near the Greater Grace Temple where the service for Aretha Franklin was to be held.
Aug. 31 (UPI) — The life of the Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin was celebrated in her hometown of Detroit on Friday by friends, family and fans alike.
Over 100 pink Cadillacs — in reference to Franklin’s hit „Freeway of Love“ — were parked on Seven Mile Road near the Greater Grace Temple where the star’s funeral service was held. Cadillac, founded in Detroit, tweeted the years of Franklin’s birth and death with the word „Respect“ on a pink background.
Crisette Ellis, wife of Bishop Charles H. Ellis III from Greater Grace Temple, organized the tribute to Franklin. Ellis works as a sales directer for cosmetic company Mary Kay, which famously gifts top sellers with pink Cadillacs.
„Her song, the pink Cadillac song, meant so much to us, we use it at every event,“ Joy Bailey Greff told the New York Times, a Mary Kay cosmetics saleswoman from Alabama who drove her pink Cadillac to the service.
Franklin was carried into the church in a gold-plated brass coffin and was dressed in a gold sequined dress with gold heels to match. This was her fourth outfit change since the casket viewing services began, with other outfits including a rose gold St. John ’s gown and gold Christian Louboutin heels, a red suit with red Louboutins, and a powder blue dress with heels to match.
The service featured performances of her hit songs from Jennifer Hudson, Ariana Grande, Faith Hill, Chaka Khan, Detroit’s own Clark Sisters and her own son, Edward, among others. Speakers included Reverend Al Sharpton, who read a message from former President Barack Obama, former President Bill Clinton and close friend Smokey Robinson who sang an acapella version of „I’m Going to Miss You.“
Aretha Franklin died of Pancreatic cancer at 76 years old on August 16,2018 in Detroit.
