It's been two weeks since Traci Braxton succumbed to her year-long battle with esophageal cancer, and the Braxton sisters just want her at peace. However, the sisters believe her husband and manager are "exploiting" her death.
Against her wishes, Traci's husband Kevin Surratt, and management have planned to have a viewing with Zoom links and a funeral service. "Traci did not want a funeral or wake. She did not want people looking all over her body. She specifically requested to be immediately cremated...There was a Zoom meeting that made it clear about what she wanted, and now her husband is trying to cash in on her name," per a Braxton insider for Page Six.
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Surratt moved forward against Traci's wishes and held a viewing for her last week. Her sisters and mother chose not to attend, though her father did attend. It's alleged that he was initially denied entry "for not being on the list." The insider added, "He was so upset that he wasn't on the list. Someone from the church recognized him and let him in and he had to sit in the fourth row."
Surratt has since denied these allegations. He told Page Six that "my father-in-law and brother-in-law came in briefly. He also insisted that he invited the sisters but, "they did not show up." Her husband claims that he honored her wishes and that she gave directions to the funeral home prior to her passing.
On Thursday (March 30), Traci's manager, Cliff Jones is also holding an actual funeral service despite his managerial rights being relinquished before her passing. Sources claim that he reached out to gospel artists Kim Burrell and Byron Cage to perform at the service. The singers have since pulled out of the performance.
Page Six's source did say that Traci's body has been cremated and the family will hold their own private memorial on April 2, which would have been her 51st birthday.
[Via]