Aretha Franklin funeral service bishop accused of 'groping' Ariana Grande issues an apology
The bishop who led the service at Aretha Franklin's funeral also made an inappropriate and possibly racist joke about Ariana's name, leading to further uproar.
Bishop Charles H. Ellis III, who was in charge of leading Aretha Franklin's funeral, has issued an apology for how he touched Ariana Grande on stage after her performance. A video of the moment the bishop wrapped his arm around the 25-year-old singer after her rendition of Franklin's (You Make Me Feel Like) 'A Natural Woman' went viral on social media. His hand appeared to touch the side of Grande's breast and resulted in the birth of the #RespectAriana hashtag on Twitter. Several netizens expressed their outrage at the behavior, and soon, over 90,000 tweets had condemned the bishop's actions.
