Jennifer Hudson Pays Tribute To Aretha Franklin At Pulitzer Prize Ceremony

Jennifer Hudson paid tribute to Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin at the Pulitzer Prize awards ceremony in New York City on Wednesday.

The singer performed “Amazing Grace”, which received a standing ovation at the annual Pulitzer Prize luncheon at Columbia University’s Low Memorial Library.

Franklin was posthumously awarded an honorary Pulitzer Prize. The judges praised Franklin “for her indelible contribution to American music and culture for more than five decades.”

Franklin is the first individual woman to receive a special citation prize, which was first awarded in 1930.

Along with Franklin, composer Ellen Reid was named as this year’s winner of the Pulitzer Prize in music for her debut opera, prism.

Special citation awards have previously been won by Hank Williams, Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane and Bob Dylan. Franklin died in August 2018 at age 76 of pancreatic cancer.

Hudson posted a vintage photo of Franklin on Instagram and commented, “Only 43 special citations have been granted since 1930, and #ArethaFranklin became the first woman honored with one. Franklin’s citation was a rare move for the @pulitzerprizes. The queen still reigns.”

Hudson has been selected to play Franklin in an upcoming biopic of the singer’s life titled, Respect. The script has been penned by Oscar-winning Thelma & Louise screenwriter Callie Khouri with Liesl Tommy set to direct.

Source: Read Full Article