Academy Award winners Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls) and Forest Whitaker (Last King Of Scotland) star in the remarkable life story of the Queen Of Soul, Aretha Franklin.

Raised by her strict Baptist minister father C.L. Franklin (Whitaker), Aretha Franklin (Hudson) had always possessed an incredible singing voice. When she was eventually signed by a recording company, success was elusive. Struggling to find her voice, romance with eventual husband and manager Ted White (Marlon Wayans) and collaboration with a new producer (Marc Maron) would eventually lead to breakout success before the trappings of fame intervened.

Co-starring Audra McDonald, Titus Burgess and Mary J. Blige, Liesl Tommy's drama reveals the incredible life lived by a woman who was a force for change as African Americans sought equality and RESPECT.