Watch Kelly Clarkson and Ariana Grande’s stunning performance of Aretha Franklin’s ‘Respect'

20 September 2021, 13:51 | Updated: 22 February 2023, 16:52

By Hannah Lovejoy

@HanLovejoy

Kelly Clarkson and Ariana Grande performed ‘Respect’ as part of a mashup alongside John Legend and Blake Shelton on The Voice USA.

Kelly Clarkson and Ariana Grande teamed up for a powerful cover of Aretha Franklin’s iconic 1967 hit ‘Respect’.

John Legend and Blake Shelton also performed and sang Sam and Dave’s 1966 hit ‘Hold On, I’m Comin’.

The two classic songs from the sixties were performed together as a mash-up by all of The Voice USA coaches.

The Voice judges perform Aretha Franklin song Respect

Read more: When Aretha Franklin performed stunning ‘I Will Always Love You’ in emotional Whitney Houston tribute

Kelly, Ariana, John and Blake will appear on the new season of The Voice USA and will be working with new artists as they compete in the singing competition.

Kelly Clarkson previously covered ‘Respect’ by Aretha Franklin during her time as a contestant on American Idol in 2002.

Ariana Grande also covered an Aretha Franklin song when she paid tribute to the music legend in 2018. Shortly after Aretha passed away, Ariana performed Aretha’s 1968 hit song ‘(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman’ during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

‘Respect’ is one of Aretha’s most well known songs and upon release it reached number one on the US Billboard 100 chart. In the UK, it peaked at number ten and spent 14 weeks on the official chart.

Respect - Aretha Franklin

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‘Respect’ was Aretha’s signature song and also became a soundtrack for the racial and gendered political movements of its time when it was released in 1967. Aretha knew that ‘Respect’ carried great power and previously said that it was of “monumental significance”.

“It [reflected] the need of a nation, the need of the average man and woman in the street, the businessman, the mother, the fireman, the teacher—everyone wanted respect,” Aretha wrote in her memoir, Aretha: From These Roots.

“It was also one of the battle cries of the civil rights movement. The song took on monumental significance.”

Respect is also the name of Aretha’s new biopic movie that sees Jennifer Hudson starring in the leading role as Aretha.