Pete Davidson claims he was high on ketamine while saying goodbye to the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, at her memorial service in 2018.
The actor/comedian recalls the experience in his newly released Netflix stand-up special, Turbo Fonzarelli, where he says he'd taken ketamine before the funeral, which reportedly lasted for more than seven hours. Davidson attended the service with his then-fiancée, Ariana Grande, who was also a performer at the occasion.
“I’m embarrassed. I was out and about like that. That’s not cool,” Davidson admitted. He added that the late Franklin "will never know" about how high he was, but it made for an embarrassing moment in front of the singer's relatives.
“I'm so high I thought it’d be a good idea to go up to her family and go, ‘Hey! I’m just here to pay my R-E-S-P-E-C-Ts,’” he joked.
Davidson suggested that if "Lady Soul" was still alive, she would've said, "Hey! Who are you and what the fuck are you doing at my funeral?”
Although Davidson's drug use wasn't apparent to reporters who attended Franklin's service, Grande's appearance made headlines as she was inappropriately grabbed by Bishop Charles H. Ellis III, who oversaw the event. Bishop Ellis later apologized, saying, "It would never be my intention to touch any woman’s breast."
