Wedding Tea :: Aretha Franklin Spills On Proposal, Who’s Gonna Sing + Location Site

This week, news hit that Aretha Franklin and her long-term boyfriend William “Willie” Wilkerson had plans to walk down the aisle. And now we’ve learned more details on her big day.

On how the proposal went down:

“We were … just kind of talking along those lines, and then it got very serious…I just said, ‘Is that a proposal?’ and he said ‘yes.’ And that’s how that happened; we just kind of talked into it.”

On why she decided to tie the knot again and what she loves about her fiance:

“I like being married. It’s an institution that I like….So momentarily I don’t see any reason why I shouldn’t be married……We’re very compatible, and he supports me and I support him a lot, and he has given me specialized attention that I don’t think I’ve received from anyone else….I receive a lot of male attention, but Will is more special than all the rest.”

On if she’ll use a wedding planner:

“You know I am very hands-on. There is no way in the world anyone else could do my wedding other than myself, along with whomever I select to do various things.”

Franklin is also scouting locations for the ceremony, which she estimates will include about 250 people, but shares that the ceremony will more than likely be at the Hamptons, on a private beach. Who’s gonna sing? No one’s been confirmed, but she has her hopes set on Smokey Robinson, Karen Clark and Stevie Wonder. How sweet! [Associated Press]