Out From The Shadow
Erma Franklin recorded and performed during one of soul music’s most amazing decades, building her singing career long before her most famous recording became the public’s biggest memory of her. Like her younger sister Aretha, Erma led an active professional and artistic life that included albums, charting singles, touring, and later public performances tied to moving historic moments.
Growing Up In Mississippi And Detroit
Erma Franklin was born in Shelby, Mississippi in 1938, but grew up in Detroit. After her parents separated in 1948, she continued to live with her father . Her father, Reverend C. L. Franklin, led New Bethel Baptist Church. Mr Franklin placed music at the center of his family life. When Erma’s mother passed away in 1952, Erma took on a caretaking role for her younger sisters Aretha and Carolyn. Church, singing, and family bonds became the pillars of the three sisters' early identity.
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
Singing At New Bethel Baptist Church
As a child, Erma sang at New Bethel alongside her sisters Aretha and Carolyn. These performances were the Franklin sisters’ earliest public musical appearances as a unit. Church services gave the trio consistent exposure to audiences and the discipline of regular live performance. It was still a long time before professional recording opportunities emerged and the sisters’ careers started to diverge.
Andrew Jameson, Wikimedia Commons
The Cleo-Patrettes: Erma’s First Vocal Group
As a teenager in Detroit, Erma Franklin formed the Cleo-Patrettes, an R & B vocal group that won a city-wide talent contest and recorded for local label J-V-B. The group disbanded after high school, but it offered Erma her first taste of performance, competition, and studio experience—before her solo recording career began.
Opportunities Just Out Of Reach
Before signing with Epic Records, young Erma auditioned for opportunities with Chess Records and attracted the interest of Berry Gordy and Billy Davis as a potential early artist for Gordy’s then-new Motown Records venture. Her father, however, insisted she pursue college first, so she passed on those early chances and enrolled at Clark College, a historically Black school in Atlanta, Georgia.
Kingkongphoto & www.celebrity-photos.com from Laurel Maryland, USA, Wikimedia Commons
Practical Path Through College
Before committing fully to music, Erma studied business at Clark College, now Clark Atlanta University. The decision was a backup plan with the knowledge that her music might not pan out. At least the added understanding of the business would also come in handy navigating the always unpredictable recording industry.
They Passed Her By
While she was at college in Atlanta, Erma heard that songs written by Berry Gordy and intended for her to sing were recorded by others, including “All I Could Do Was Cry,” which became a hit for Etta James in 1960. Erma was disappointed at these missed opportunities at a breakthrough. But the good news was that by now her sister Aretha had a successful debut album out. This made Erma’s father change his mind about Erma’s singing career.
Atlantic Records (Life time: Published before 1978 without a copyright notice), Wikimedia Commons
Early Recording Work With Epic Records
Erma signed with Epic Records. Her debut album on that label, Her Name Is Erma, was released in 1962, and it established her as an active recording artist in the early 60s. But in the competitive soul music landscape of the early 60s, the album had too much of a pop flavor. It didn’t make effective use of Erma’s singing talent and its singles failed to chart. She explored other singing opportunities.
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
Touring With The Lloyd Price Orchestra
After her early Epic contract ended, Erma Franklin spent five years as the featured vocalist with the Lloyd Price Orchestra, performing with one of the era’s major R & B innovators. She described the experience as steady, noting she earned the same pay throughout her entire time there, even as she continued to eye opportunities to strike out on her own. The chance finally came in 1967.
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Recording “Piece Of My Heart” In 1967
In 1967, Erma signed with Shout Records in New York City, and recorded “Piece of My Heart.” Here she delivered a controlled, emotionally layered performance. The single was a Top Ten soul hit in the United States and made it to the Billboard Hot 100. At the time, it signaled a defining step forward in Erma Franklin’s recording career.
Screenshot from Erma Franklin – Piece of My Heart, Shout Records (1967)
Song Origins
“Piece of My Heart” was written and produced by Jerry Ragovoy and Bert Berns. Erma’s contribution lay in her controlled interpretation as the original recording artist, immersed in soul singing since the time of her first church performance at the age of five.
Screenshot from Erma Franklin – Piece of My Heart, Shout Records (1967)
Grammy Nomination
“Piece of My Heart” earned Erma a Grammy nomination for Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance by a Female. The eventual Grammy winner was her sister Aretha with her iconic “Chain of Fools”, on which Erma and Carolyn had sung backing vocals.
Atlantic Records, Wikimedia Commons
She Didn’t Recognize Her Own Song
When Erma heard Janis Joplin’s version of “Piece of My Heart” on the radio a year or two later, she reportedly didn’t recognize it at first due to its hard rock-blues arrangement and vocal style. Erma respected Janis’ passionate interpretation of the song that numerous other artists have also covered since.
Albert B. Grossman Management (personal manager), New York., Wikimedia Commons
Chaos
With the success of “Piece of My Heart” the time was right for Erma to make a follow-up recording. But just as plans were forming for a full album, Shout Records producer Bert Berns died suddenly of a heart attack at the age of 38. The loss of the label's producer and founder threw the recording plans into chaos and stalled Erma’s momentum.
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
Soul Sister
In 1969 Erma signed with Brunswick Records and released Soul Sister, her second studio album. Her single “Gotta Find Me a Lover (24 Hours a Day)” charted modestly on the R&B lists. But despite the initial wave of excitement at Brunswick, the album failed to break through.
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
Backing Aretha On Atlantic Recordings
While she was making her own initial solo push, Erma recorded background vocals with her sister Carolyn on several of Aretha Franklin’s Atlantic Records sessions. This included harmonies on tracks such as “You Make Me Feel Like (A Natural Woman),” “Do Right Woman, Do Right Man,” and “Baby, I Love You,” just to name a few that are now recognized as part of the classic “Franklin Sound.”
Columbia Records, Wikimedia Commons
Touring Canada And Europe
Following the success of “Piece of My Heart,” Erma Franklin toured widely as a solo artist. She performed in Canada, Europe, and the United States at major venues—Madison Square Garden, the Apollo Theatre, Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, the Coconut Grove, and Tropicana in Las Vegas—headlining her shows in England, Germany, Italy, Africa, the Caribbean and beyond.
Screenshot from Erma Franklin – Piece of My Heart, Shout Records (1967)
Stepping Away From The Music Industry
In the mid-70s, Erma left the music industry, aside from occasional involvement connected to her sister’s career. The departure marked a clear turning point, as she began to get more involved in community service projects. It was time to start giving back to the community that she'd grown up in.
Returning To The Stage In 1986
Erma reappeared publicly in 1986 as a special guest on Aretha Franklin’s Showtime TV special, filmed at Detroit’s Music Hall. The appearance put her right back up on a major stage. It wasn’t quite a full-blown comeback, but the one-off show was a great way to connect with audiences again in the MTV era.
Screenshot from Aretha Franklin, Showtime Special, Showtime Networks (1986)
Singing At Nelson Mandela’s Detroit Rally
On June 28, 1990, Erma performed at Nelson Mandela’s rally at Detroit’s Tiger Stadium. The event was one of her most visible late-career appearances, anchoring her musical presence to a historic and emotional global moment rather than an album release or tour.
Library of the London School of Economics and Political Science, Wikimedia Commons
Nineties Revival
In the early 90s Erma’s original recording of "Piece of My Heart" found renewed visibility in the UK after being featured in a Levi’s jeans commercial. The exposure sparked a reissue of the single in 1992, where it climbed to No. 9 on the UK Singles Chart. It was a welcome introduction of her voice to a new generation of listeners.
Screenshot from Genius: Aretha, National Geographic (2021–2021)
Marriage And Family Life
Outside music, Erma married Thomas Garrett and had two children, Thomas Jr. and Sabrina. These personal milestones coincided with her years away from the industry, grounding her life around family and stability rather than performance schedules or touring commitments.
Twenty-Five Years Of Community Service
For twenty-five years, Erma worked at Detroit’s Boysville Holy Cross Community Center, supporting homeless and disadvantaged minority children. This commitment to helping others was one of the longest continuous chapters of her adult life.
Final Years
By the early 2000s, Erma’s public appearances became a lot less frequent as her health declined. She was still connected to her lifelong hometown of Detroit and to her family while outside public view after all those decades spent recording, touring, and appearing on national stages.
Screenshot from Aretha Franklin / Showtime Special, Showtime Networks (1986)
Death In Detroit In 2002
Erma Franklin died of cancer on September 7, 2002, in Detroit, at the age of 64. Her death was the close of a life that spanned gospel church music beginnings, major-label recordings, active singing in some of the landmark moments in soul music, and decades of community-focused work.
Screenshot from Aretha Franklin / Showtime Special, Showtime Networks (1986)
A Career Of High Points
Erma Franklin’s singing legacy is best viewed through its milestones: early Epic releases, the original recording of “Piece of My Heart,” and later historic appearances with the sisters, her lifelong singing partners. As a powerful and expressive singer in an era of great music, Erma Franklin’s career and influence still has a special gleam all its own that will never fade away.
Screenshot from Aretha Franklin / Showtime Special, Showtime Networks (1986)
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