Aretha Franklin, known famously as “The Queen of Soul,” has died at age 76.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that the legendary songstress was ‘gravely ill’ that family members were preparing for the worse (click HERE if you missed that).

Franklin unfortunately passed away early this morning after a long battle with cancer.

Details below…

TMZ reports that Aretha passed away in her Detroit home where she was under hospice care. She’d been in failing health for many months and she was down to 86 pounds.

Simply put, Franklin was arguably the greatest woman singer of the modern music era. With a voice that moved easily between thunderous power and wondrous finesse, she was the woman behind so much iconic music, and the clear role model for dozens of super starts who would try to follow in her shoes.

Born in Memphis, Tenn. in 1942, Franklin was the daughter of the famous pastor and civil rights activist C. L. Franklin. When Aretha was just 2 the family left Memphis for New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, where she soon became a Motor City legend because of her riveting singing voice.

Pastor C.L. Franklin was a fiery and captivating voice at the pulpit, so it was only fitting that his young daughter would have a singing voice to match.

Aretha had a child when she was just 14, and another at age 15, but her musical talent was unmatched and record labels still came calling.

She’s so associated with Detroit that many assume Aretha Franklin was part of the Motown story, but Franklin never signed with Motown.

In fact, she turned down Berry Gordy’s fledgling label, opting instead to signed with Columbia records which wanted to push her toward a jazzy feel. However, it was Atlantic Records that saw a different path for Franklin, allowing her to utilize her gospel training and let it rip! The result was electrifying.