Celebregion

Aretha franklin with her Birthday cake   Queen of Soul Aretha franklin is 70 today March 25,212 .She attended her birthday party at Hemsley park lane hotel in new york with family and friends inlcuding Clive Davis , Diane Sawyer , Rev. Al. Sharpton, and  Willie Wilkerson , Franklin's longtime companion .      In an interview at her swanky birthday party on Saturday, Franklin said she and Davis, who helped engineer her comeback in the 1980s, would be working on new music." I have re-signed with Clive Davis, so I'm recording with Clive again, " said Franklin of the music mogul, who is associated with Sony Music Entertainment.    Franklin said that after Davis' birthday next month, " we're going to sit together and decide what it is we're going to record ."    Wilkerson stood by Franklin's side as she cut her three-tier, lime-green birthday cake  while the crowd serenaded her with Stevie Wonder's version of "Happy Birthday."    

     Hundreds of mourners gathered at a Los Angeles-area church on Saturday to remember rhythm-and-blues singer  Etta James , saying she overcame great personal and professional hurdles to sing "the times that she lived."     During a two-hour service that featured performances by pop stars  Stevie Wonder  and  Christina Aguilera , the  Rev. Al Sharpton eulogized James as a woman who rose from a tough childhood and poured her pain into her music. Aguilera performed a version of "At Last," James' show-stopping hit and best-known song.      James died at 73 at a  Riverside, California , hospital on January 20 from complications of leukemia, prompting numerous tributes from artists and musicians who were influenced by her work, including  Mariah Carey  and Aretha Franklin. Christiana Anguilera performing Stevie wonder perfoming Video of Christina performing "At Last "

 Singer Etta james funeral plans have been released .A  public viewing  will be held Friday for singer  Etta James , and the Rev.  Al Sharpton  will eulogize the late legend at a  private funeral  Saturday.    A statement from Sharpton's representative Tuesday said the funeral will include performances by celebrities, but those names were not announced. James died last Friday at age 73 after battling leukemia and other ailments, including dementia. She was most famous for her classic "At Last," but over her decades-long career, she became revered for her passionate singing voice.    The public viewing will be held in Inglewood and the funeral will be held in Gardena, both in the Los Angeles area. The family is asking that any donations be sent to the Philadelphia-based Rhythm & Blues Foundation. AP

    Rap mogul Diddy and Rev. Al sharpton will speak at late rapper Heavy D's funeral on Friday, and BET Network plans a tribute for him at the Soul Train Awards.      Diddy said in a statement that he was "heartbroken by the passing of my dear friend."       "He was a wonderful human being, who inspired and paved the way for a Hip Hop generation," the statement said. "We were like brothers — I will miss him more than words can express."     A private funeral for the rap legend will be held at the historic Grace Baptist Church in Mount Vernon, just north of New York City.     BET also announced Monday that the Soul Train Music Awards in Atlanta will pay tribute to Heavy D, with Curtis Blow, Naughty by Nature, Big Daddy Kane, Doug E fresh, DJ Eddie F, Whodini and Daddy-O of Stetsasonic participating. Heavy D's family has launched the Heavy D and Xea Myers Fund, named in honor of the rapper and his daughter, who's 11 years old.