Beyonce’s Father Calls Aretha Franklin’s Criticism ‘Ridiculous’

Beyonce's father and manager, Matthew Knowles -- known for being the driving force behind the pop/R&B diva's enormous success -- defended his daughter and called Aretha Franklin's recent criticism of the 26-year-old's Grammy tribute performance, "ridiculous."

The Queen of Soul made a fuss and expressed discontent with Beyonce's reference to Tina Turner as "the queen." "I am not sure of whose toes I may have stepped on or whose ego I may have bruised between the Grammy writers and Beyonce," Franklin said in a statement released Tuesday. "However, I dismissed it as a cheap shot for controversy."

But like any decent parent, Papa Knowles responded to Franklin's slam in an interview with CelebTV.com on Wednesday. "As a manager I am not taking something this ridiculous to Beyonce," Knowles told CelebTV.com. "Beyonce referred to Tina Turner as a 'queen.' Not queen of gospel, queen of soul, queen of blues, Queen of England. I consider my wife a queen and sometimes call her that. Does Aretha have a problem with that?"

Knowles went on to rip Franklin in a statement released to PEOPLE on Thursday. "Something this ridiculous -- it's childish, it's unprofessional. And it's a sad day when egos get bruised because somebody used the word king, queen, prince or princess." Read the full story.