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Aretha Franklin Awarded Pulitzer Prize

NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 07: Aretha Franklin performs onstage at the Elton John AIDS Foundation Commemorates Its 25th Year And Honors Founder Sir Elton John During New York Fall Gala at Cathedral of St. John the Divine on November 7, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)

Aretha Franklin has been awarded a Pulitzer Prize in the Special Awards and Citation category. The committee’s announcement page praised the late singer’s “indelible contribution to American music and culture for more than five decades.” The Pultizer Prize in Music, meanwhile, was awarded to composer Ellen Reid for her opera p r i s m, which deals with “the effects of sexual and emotional abuse.” (Last year’s winner was Kendrick Lamar for his 2017 album DAMN., making him the first rapper to be receive the award.)

Aretha Franklin died at the age of 76 in August of last year. Her previously unreleased concert film, Amazing Grace, is currently in theaters. Revisit our list of Franklin’s most important musical moments here, and check out the full list of 2019 Pulitzer Prize winners at the Pulitzer website.