Sassy six-year-old Johanna Colon stole the show as she channeled Aretha Franklin for her tap dance recital, which was set to the iconic singer’s hit Respect.
The video of Johanna Colon’s dance recital has gone viral since her mother, Elissa Colon, from Raleigh, North Carolina, uploaded video of her performance on her Facebook page on June 8.
Photo Facebook
Elissa Colon captioned the video: “Johanna channeling Aretha Franklin!”
The video shows Johanna and two other girls standing with their backs to the audience.
The original clip has been viewed more than 23 million times.
Elissa M. Colon wrote on her Facebook page on June 10: “I am so proud of all 3 of these little dancing divas! They did such an amazing job and I can’t believe how much buzz their dance is getting!”
Aretha Franklin had married the much older Ted White in 1961, despite strong objections from her father.
Ted White was her manager in the ’60s. Aretha Franklin’s third child, Ted White Jr., was born in 1964. Today he is known as Teddy Richards and is a professional musician, often playing guitar in his mother’s band.
After a contentious marriage that involved domestic violence, Aretha Franklin divorced Ted White in 1969.
According to people who worked with Aretha Franklin during this period, Ted White had no prior management experience before becoming her manager. She was to spend most of the decade in the middle of a tug-of-war between Columbia Records and her husband. To this day, Aretha Franklin refuses to discuss any aspect of her relationship with Ted White. She also refuses to speak to him. They have had only two conversations since their divorce in 1969.
Aretha Franklin had married the much older Ted White in 1961, despite strong objections from her father (photo Rancurel)
Aretha Franklin married actor Glynn Turman on April 11, 1978, at her father’s New Bethel Baptist Church. She subsequently became a stepmother to Glynn Turman’s three children. They split in late 1982 and officially divorced in early 1984.
In 2012, Aretha Franklin again announced plans to walk down the aisle with her longtime companion Willie Wilkerson. Within several weeks of the announcement, Aretha Franklin called the wedding off.
Last month, the White House held a Women of Soul concert as part of the In Performance at the White House series featuring Patti LaBelle, Aretha Franklin, Jill Scott, Janelle Monae and Ariana Grande.
Aretha Franklin avoided Patti LaBelle at the White House concert
Aretha Franklin entered the concert hall to a standing ovation. On her way to her seat, she passed Patti LaBelle. Patti LaBelle reached out her hand to the Queen of Soul and that hand was left high and dry. As Aretha Franklin hit Patti LaBelle with the side eye, she brushed past LaBelle and headed to her seat while still enjoying the adulation from the audience.
It’s been well known for quite some time that Aretha Franklin doesn’t care for Patti LaBelle – although no one’s really ever been able to figure out exactly why.
There were numerous reports this week saying that Aretha Franklin was “banned” from Whitney Houston’s funeral on Saturday.
New York Daily News reported that Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston’s godmother, “angered” the late singer’s mother, Cissy Houston, with her comments during an interview on the Today Show.
“Parents have to really talk to their children before they leave home,” Aretha Franklin told Al Roker.
“They have to make sure when they leave home, they have all the right things. She left home with all the right things, but she just kind of lost her way along the way.”
The Daily News story also suggests it was this “veiled criticism” of Whitney Houston’s upbringing – and not Aretha Franklin’s medical excuse – that led her to miss the legendary singer’s service.
Meanwhile, HollywoodLife seized on the possible controversy, writing that Aretha Franklin’s “drug comments” might have caused her to be “banned” from the funeral by Cissy Houston.
There were numerous reports this week saying that Aretha Franklin was “banned” from Whitney Houston’s funeral on Saturday
The website uses the fact that Aretha Franklin played a sold-out concert in New York on Saturday night as evidence that there could be something to the “ban” explanation.
But Aretha Franklin said in her statement regarding her absence from the funeral that she wanted to “stay off [her] leg” as much as possible until her concert that night.
And it warrants mention that during the funeral, Dionne Warwick called for Aretha Franklin – still on the scheduled speakers list – to address mourners, before being alerted that the singer was not in attendance.
If there was any animosity between the Houston family and Aretha Franklin, it was awfully well hidden.
HollywoodLife also leaves out Aretha Franklin’s rep’s comments to the Daily News in which she reiterates that the singer was essentially incapacitated between concert performances over the weekend.
[youtube CUN497Hs04U]
[youtube Ckwoa03ZA1Y]
This website has updated its privacy policy in compliance with EU GDPR 2016/679. Please read this to review the updates about which personal data we collect on our site. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our updated policy. AcceptRejectRead More
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
