Taylor Swift paid tribute to the late Aretha Franklin during her Reputation Stadium Tour show on Tuesday night.
Taylor Swift remembered the Queen of Soul while performing in her hometown of Detroit, where she currently lays at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History after passing away earlier this month from advanced pancreatic cancer, aged 76.
According to Billboard, Taylor took to the stage at the Ford Field stadium just before opening the third act of the concert and celebrated the icon’s legacy.
“Last week, we lost an irreplaceable force,” the 28-year-old gushed. “Aretha Franklin did so much for music, did so much for women’s rights, did so much for civil rights. She was one of those people where no matter what you said, no matter what glowing positive thing you said about her, it would be an understatement. Words could never, ever describe how many things she did in her lifetime that made our world a better place. And this is her home.”
As the crowd of about 50,000 cheered, Taylor called on her fans to join her in a moment of silence “so that every single one of us could reflect on our love and respect for her and everything she did in her life”.
The singer stayed silent for nearly a full minute in front of a star-studded backdrop, before concluding, “We love you, Aretha.”
She then performed her next song, Delicate.
One of Taylor’s support acts, Havana star Camila Cabello, also honoured Aretha during her set.
Taylor’s concert came at the end of the first day of public visitation for the Respect hitmaker at the nearby museum, where the singer’s body will lie until Thursday for hundreds of visitors to pay their respects.
Aretha’s funeral will be held on Friday at the Greater Grace Temple in northwest Detroit and is set to include an all-star memorial concert from the likes of Ariana Grande, Stevie Wonder and Faith Hill.
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