Aretha Franklin’s Nephew Gives An Update

Aretha Franklin's nephew, Tim Franklin, gave People magazine an update on her condition.  He said Aretha is "alert, laughing, teasing, able to recognize people. Family is with her. She's home." Tim Franklin continued, "She’s watching TV, so god forbid she sees all of this ‘Aretha’s dead,’ so I don’t want to dampen her spirits on that." A close friend of Franklin told People that Aretha has "been ill for a long time" and family has been told that her "death is imminent." Some outlets are calling this hospice care. Tim said while his aunt is "sick," they "believe she'll pull through it" and "she believes she'll pull through it, and that's the important thing."