Popsugar Celebrity Aretha Franklin Pictures of Aretha Franklin Through the Years A Look Back at Aretha Franklin's Soulful 76 Years of Life — in Pictures 17 August 2018 by Victoria Messina First Published: 16 August 2018 Image Source: Getty / Hulton Archive After a lengthy battle with cancer, Aretha Franklin passed away at the age of 76 on Aug. 16, leaving behind a musical legacy that will never be forgotten. Immediately following her passing, celebrities including Lenny Kravitz, Shania Twain, Shonda Rhimes, former President Barack Obama, and more paid their respects to the Queen of Soul with heartfelt tributes on social media. To honour Aretha's memory, we're taking a look back at some of her most notable pictures through the years, ranging from passionate concert performances to glamorous award show appearances. Queue up our playlist of essential Aretha songs, and take a look through the snapshots ahead. 1968 Image Source: Getty / Express Newspapers 1 / 50 1968 Image Source: Getty / Bettmann 2 / 50 1968 Image Source: Getty / Hulton Deutsch 3 / 50 1970 Image Source: Getty / Chris Walter 4 / 50 1975 Image Source: Getty / Bettmann 5 / 50 1977 Image Source: Getty / Hulton Archive 6 / 50 1981 Image Source: Getty / Corbis 7 / 50 1981 Image Source: Getty / Roger Ressmeyer 8 / 50 1983 Image Source: Getty / David Turnley 9 / 50 1983 Image Source: Getty / Chris Walter 10 / 50 1983 Image Source: Getty / Bettmann 11 / 50 1983 Image Source: Getty / Bettmann 12 / 50 1990 Image Source: Getty / Paul Natkin 13 / 50 1990 Image Source: Getty / Paul Natkin 14 / 50 1992 Image Source: Getty / Hulton Archive 15 / 50 1992 Image Source: Getty / Mark Reinstein 16 / 50 1992 Image Source: Getty / Mark Reinstein 17 / 50 1993 Image Source: Getty / Mark Reinstein 18 / 50 1994 Image Source: Getty / L. Busacca 19 / 50 1994 Image Source: Getty / L. Busacca 20 / 50 1994 Image Source: Getty / L. Busacca 21 / 50 1995 Image Source: Getty / Jeff Kravitz 22 / 50 1995 Image Source: Getty / Jeff Kravitz 23 / 50 1995 Image Source: Getty / Steve Eichner 24 / 50 1997 Image Source: Getty / KMazur 25 / 50 1998 Image Source: Getty / KMazur 26 / 50 1998 Image Source: Getty / STAN HONDA 27 / 50 1998 Image Source: Getty / Mitchell Gerber 28 / 50 2001 Image Source: Getty / George De Sota 29 / 50 2001 Image Source: Getty / Scott Gries 30 / 50 2001 Image Source: Getty / Scott Gries 31 / 50 2002 Image Source: Getty / Todd Plitt 32 / 50 2002 Image Source: Getty 33 / 50 2003 Image Source: Getty / Frank Micelotta 34 / 50 2003 Image Source: Getty / SGranitz 35 / 50 2004 Image Source: Getty 36 / 50 2005 Image Source: Getty / Ralph Notaro 37 / 50 2006 Image Source: Getty / Mychal Watts 38 / 50 2007 Image Source: Getty / Peter Kramer 39 / 50 2008 Image Source: Getty / Kevin Winter 40 / 50 2009 Image Source: Getty / Jason Kempin 41 / 50 2010 Image Source: Getty / Leigh Vogel 42 / 50 2011 Image Source: Getty / Monica Morgan 43 / 50 2012 Image Source: Getty / Kris Connor 44 / 50 2013 Image Source: Getty / Bobby Bank 45 / 50 2014 Image Source: Getty / Larry French/BET 46 / 50 2015 Image Source: Getty / Rob Kim 47 / 50 2016 Image Source: Getty / Steve Mack 48 / 50 2017 Image Source: Getty / Taylor Hill 49 / 50 2017 Image Source: Getty / Theo Wargo 50 / 50 Aretha Franklin