While the nation was (and still is) celebrating the life of Aretha Franklin at her day-long homegoing service in Detroit, another blow to the stomach came from one of our living soul legends. Unfortunately, Gladys Knight has revealed that she, like Aretha Franklin, has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
According to The Detroit News, Knight, also a Motor City native, shared her current medical situation while at Franklin’s funeral at Greater Grace Temple. The 74-year-old somberly told local news station WDIV (Channel 4) that in an intimate moment between the two of them before Franklin passed, Knight disclosed that she “had the same disease” as her dear friend. The Queen of Soul publicly shared her pancreatic cancer diagnosis in late 2010 and fought with it for eight years.
However, as the worried tweets came rolling in, a spokesperson for Gladys Knight denied that the singer is suffering from pancreatic cancer. Detroit Free Press reports that Javier Delgado, a publicist with JDS PR, said “She’s healthy. Someone must have misinterpreted.”
Either way, send prayers up for Knight’s continued health and strength. Watch her full interview below.
READ MORE: Gladys Knight Attributes Her Ageless Beauty To Good Genes And Clean Living…Nothing Else