Celebrities, Family Members, Friends, and Fans Gather In Etta James’ Honor

Over the weekend, memorial service for the late Etta James (born Jamesetta Hawkins) was held at the City of Refuge Church in Gardena, California. She was a soul singer who won four Grammys for her tremendous work in the late 1900s. James passed away, at 73 years old, on January 20th, due to leukemia, dementia, and other complications. Not only friends and family, but also fans were able to gather at the venue for the service dedicated to Ms. James. As previously reported, 57 year old minister/activist Alfred “Al” Sharpton delivered the eulogy for Ms. James. He began with a personal statement from President Barack Obama, which said,

“Etta will be remembered for her legendary voice and her contributions to our nation’s musical heritage.”

And then Sharpton went on with his own prepared word, asserting that James’ music helped build a bridge between races during the Civil Rights Era. He said,

“She was able to get us on the same rhythms and humming the same ballads and understanding each others’ melodies way before we could even use the same hotels… You beat ‘em Etta. At last. At last. At last!”

Sharpton also tweeted about the event.

61 year old singer Stevie Wonder performed 3 songs in her memory, one featuring a harmonica solo. And 31 year old singer Christina Aguliera sang “At Last,” in her honor. Unfortunately, rumors are circulating that Mother Nature showed up during Christina’s performance, but we think it’s just photoshop. Either way, the memorial seemed to be successful otherwise. Here are a couple more photos.

[DailyMail, WashingtonPost]

-@Kami2Kute