Superstar Aretha Franklin is making news with the announcement that she is engaged to her longtime friend William Wilkerson. The Queen of Soul’s engagement took place over the holidays and the wedding is rumored to take place this coming summer.
This good news for Aretha also brings to light some of the health scares that have kept her in the news in recent years. She bounced back after a health scare and had surgery in December 2024 due to extreme pain in her side. She did say that the surgery she had would add 15 to 20 years to her life. The cause of that pain was never disclosed by Franklin. Although there were some reports that she was suffering from pancreatic cancer, Franklin communicated that she did not have cancer. Franklin does, however, have type 2 diabetes, which brings with a host of health problems.
Additionally, many fans have grown concerned about Franklin’s rapidly rising weight when seeing her at performances and award shows over the past couple of years. Franklin decided to do something about her growing weight when she declared she is “entirely too fat.” She boasted that she has lost 85 pounds and is looking much healthier. Healthy weight loss can reverse type 2 diabetes, and you have to hope that will be the case for Aretha.
There has been much speculation on Franklin’s weight loss methods as most experts say it would be virtually impossible to lose weight so quickly with just diet and exercise at her age of 69. Weight loss surgery is suspected, but no confirmation has been given.
No matter what Aretha Franklin is doing to lose weight, we can only hope she’s doing it in a healthy way. Losing weight will also help with her management of type 2 diabetes and other weight related diseases. The weight loss can also help add years to her life. With the news of her upcoming wedding, the Queen of Soul is looking forward to finding the perfect wedding gown for her special day. Her continued weight loss and improved health can help make the entire wedding experience even more special. She is said to be considering Vera Wang, Valentino, and Donna Karan as potential designers for her dress.