Since the age of 9, Christina Aguilera has *ALWAYS* paid respect to all the great soul singers, like Etta James that inspired her. A THREAD about how @xtina’s appreciation for these greats has informed almost every aspect of her career and helped her escape an abusive household.

Growing up in an abusive household with domestic violence from her father, @Xtina sought comfort in music. She would sing the soundtrack to The Sound Of Music to escape. Her grandmother would later introduce her to soul, jazz and blues at 7.

. @Xtina’s career would be heavily influenced by Etta James. At 9 years old, she would choose to sing Etta’s “Sunday Kind of Lovin’” on Star Search, go on to meet Etta at 25, and then at 31, be asked by the James family to pay tribute to Etta at her funeral.

In 2000, at 19, on the heels of the success of her debut album, garnering 3 #1 hits and Grammy for Best New Artist, @xtina would talk about how much her true personality was fighting to be let out from the manufactured bubblegum pop princess image her label pushed on her.

During the recording of her debut album, she wanted to infuse soul, jazz, R&B - the music she was inspired by, but the label wouldn’t let her. Instead, they would mold her into the pop bubblegum machine of the time. @xtina was adamant that her next album would be different.

At 20, the industry saw there was more to @xtina than her pop image and invited her to pay tribute to Whitney @ 1st BET Awards. Whitney praised: “You've done the best rendition of 'Run to You' besides myself." She would be asked by the family to pay tribute again in 2016 & 2017.

At 21, @Xtina’s second album, STRIPPED was released in 2002. It finally infused soul, r&b, hip hop, rock, latin - all genres of music she’s been inspired by. Lyrically, songs from the album discuss themes like self love and respect, sexuality, and feminism.

On STRIPPED, a 21 year old @xtina would collaborate across genres with @AliciaKeys, @RealLindaPerry, Rockwilder (Method Man, Redman, Jay-Z), The Clutch, Glen Ballard (Alanis Morissette), Scott Storch (The Roots). @xtina’s setlist for this tour included Etta James’ AT LAST.

At 24, @xtina set out to dedicate her 3rd album, BACK TO BASICS, as a tribute to those same soul singers, jazz makers, and blues singers that inspired her as a young girl.

. @Xtina would bring her tribute to the 20s, 30s, 40s era of music to life by working with producers like @REALDJPREMIER, @RealLindaPerry, Kwamé, @IAmRobLewis (Babyface, Toni Braxton, Patti LaBelle) & @MarkRonson.

In the first track to BACK TO BASICS, @xtina recorded an intro produced by the legendary @REALDJPREMIER that makes her tribute to the music of the 20s, 30s and 40s. “So here I stand today, in tribute I do pay, to those before me who laid it down and paved the way.”

. @xtina literally name checks greats like Donny Hathaway, Leena Horne, Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Billie Holiday, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, Louis Armstrong, Minnie Riperton, Otis Redding, Coltrane, Lady Day, & Etta James in the third track, “Back in the Day,” off the album

“Such classic songs, don't forget them. Though times have changed, they still remain, my inspiration everyday. So give it up for the ones who came before, opened up that door.” - @Xtina would sing, paying respect to her idols in “Back in the Day.”

Later that year, a lifelong dream came true after having met and spent time with her idol, Etta James. Etta would say to @xtina, “I've never seen a girl sing as tough as you sing, as little as you are. It's like you're an old soul."

Etta would go on to co-sign @Xtina’s perseverance and strong will: "Etta had told me she had heard I was 'a little hotheaded,' and you know what she said? 'Just like me — a girl after my own heart!'”

Meanwhile, jazz legends like @ItsTonyBennett and @HerbieHancock took notice of then 25 year old @Xtina’s soulful voice and invited her to collaborate with them. Even opera singer, @AndreaBocelli would go on to collaborate with Christina.

In 2005, a year before the release of BACK TO BASICS, @HerbieHancock and @Xtina collaborated on “A Song For You,” which was featured on his duets album POSSIBILITIES. The song would garner a Grammy nomination and result in this iconic performance at the 2006 Grammys.

In 2006, @ItsTonyBennett invites @Xtina to perform “Steppin’ Out With My Baby” for his 80th birthday television special and would go on to compare her to Ethel Merman and Ginger Rogers. They would perform again in 2007 and he’d later feature this collab on his duets album in 2012

In 2007, the industry once again took note of a now 26 year old @Xtina’s multifaceted artistry and asked her to perform a tribute to the late James Brown at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards. This would be a critically acclaimed, career defining moment for Christina.

Christina took the task of paying tribute to James Brown seriously, studying 6 diff versions of “It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World.” @Xtina would say “to be able to step into those shoes, & try my best at filling them—NEVER going to even attempt [at replacing], was special to me.”

Christina’s tribute to James Brown would be featured at the Grammys Museum and in multiple top 10 unforgettable Grammy moments lists in the years following. In 2018, @xtina included the tribute on her Liberation tour setlist.