Aretha Franklin to Perform at Whitney Houston's Funeral: Reports

Aretha Franklin engaged — Aretha Franklin, godmother to Whitney Houston, will be performing at the singer's upcoming funeral in New Jersey, according to reports. Reuters

Aretha Franklin, godmother to Whitney Houston, will be performing at the singer's upcoming funeral in New Jersey, according to reports.

The details of Houston's burial are still murky and being ironed out, but Entertainment Tonight reported Wednesday that music mogul Clive Davis personally asked the R&B legend to perform at the funeral. Sources said she agreed.

A source involved with the funeral arrangements also told NBC New York that Franklin will sing.

Plans for a public funeral in Newark were nixed after Houston's family decided to make the ceremony private. The invitation-only service will be held at noon this Saturday at New Hope Baptist Church in New Jersey, where the singer grew up.

Whitney has shared her entire life with the public. This is her final farewell, Let her family share that time with her, Carolyn Whigham, owner of the funeral home handling Houston's ceremony, told NBC New York.

Although the public and media won't be allowed inside, fans are expected to make a makeshift memorial outside the church's grounds.

Rev. Jess Jackson has also confirmed he will be heading to the church to bid farewell to Houston, according to the New Jersey Real-Time News. Marvin Winans, a pastor of Perfecting Faith Church in Detroit who married Houston with her ex-husband, Bobby Brown, is reportedly delivering the eulogy. Pastor Joe A. Carter of New Hope is officiating.

Houston and Franklin were both signed on to Clive Davis' Arista Records in the 1980s. At a concert in North Carolina Tuesday night, Franklin paid tribute to Houston by singing her goddaughter's 1992 hit, I Will Always Love You.

We want to thank you for your music and your legacy, Aretha sang, according to The Huffington Post.

Houston, 48, was found dead in a bathtub in a Beverly Hills hotel room Saturday night just hours before a pre-Grammys bash. The cause of death is still unknown and a toxicology report and official autopsy may not be available for the next six to eight weeks. Police found empty medicine bottles, along with pills like Xanax and ibuprofen in her hotel room, and she had ordered champagne and Heineken from room service.

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