Aretha Franklin still looking for biopic investors

R&B legend Aretha Franklin is $15 million (£10.6 million) away from financing her forthcoming biographical film.

The 74-year-old Respect singer has been making hits in the music industry since the 1960s and movie producers are eager to document her incredible journey in a biopic - and fortunately for fans, a screen adaptation of her fascinating life story is coming soon.

"We are speaking right now to some people out of Hollywood who have put up a $20 million (£14.1 million) budget," she tells Billboard. "I think we need at least another $10 million (£7 million) to $15 million (£10.6 million), so we're looking for investors to do that."

Meanwhile, Aretha is sharing some soulful wisdom with Adele after previously complimenting the pop star for her song Rolling in the Deep.

"She (Adele) clearly knows what she wants," the Queen of Soul says. "She's a very good writer. She's a women's artist; she writes and touches on things that (resonate) with women. I think she should just keep doing what she's doing."

And Aretha is planning her own return to the charts thanks to a new project with veteran singer-songwriter George Benson.

"We've got some new, really, really hot stuff coming," she gushes. "I would say by summer, the end of summer. It's a really mixed bag (of styles)."

Aretha has been the Queen of Soul for six decades now and although the icon is happy about what she has accomplished in the music industry over the years, her charitable efforts is what she is most proud of.

Asked about her legacy and how she'd like to be remembered, she tells Billboard, "I don't know, somewhere between the musical and the humanitarian. That was one reason that I was so appreciative of the Presidential Medal of Freedom because it spoke to my service to humanity and the community."

Aretha was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush in 2005.