I have always found them terribly overrated, but I think my opinion is colored by the fact that I heard so many stories about what a horrible person Lou Reed was before I ever got a chance to really dive into this music.
Doesn't say "born." It says "come from." Aretha Franklin moved to Detroit at a very young age and grew up there. She made her name there, and probably most importantly, she always identified Detroit as her hometown.
It continues to boggle my mind why people seem to care about the town where someone was born. I was born in a hospital in a suburb of Detroit, Michigan. As far as I know, I have never once returned to that suburb in my entire life since. It would be beyond strange for me to consider that suburb my hometown. It has had no influence on my character whatsoever. Likewise, Aretha Franklin only spent the first two years of her life in Memphis. She likely had no memories of her time there. Aretha Franklin is from Detroit. Full stop.
I think that perhaps a majority of people grew up in the town where they were born, and in that case the two concepts become synonymous. I still live in the city of my birth, but what about a military family that relocates every year or two? Those children are from nowhere - or everywhere - never staying in one place long enough to put down roots. So for them their place of birth becomes a reasonable default (but I am not one of them so please correct me if I'm wrong!)
+1 for eric29's comment....coming from one of those military brats who moved every year or two. I spent very little time in Iwakuni, Japan (total of perhaps 3 years), but my mother is from there, and since I'm from nowhere, I list it when I'm asked where I'm from. My hometown, though, is where I live now.
Also... MORE COWBELL!