Whitney Houston

Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "the Voice", she is one of the most awarded performers of all time. As a cultural icon, her chart achievements and music videos influenced the breaking down of gender and racial barriers. Known for her vocal delivery and live performances, Houston was ranked second on Rolling Stone's list of the greatest singers of all time in 2023.

Houston signed to Arista Records at the age of 19. Her first two studio albums, Whitney Houston (1985) and Whitney (1987), topped the Billboard 200 for 14 and 11 weeks, respectively. The former remains the best selling debut album by a solo artist in history, while the latter made her the first woman to debut atop the US and UK charts. Houston took a more urban turn with her third album, I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990), and performed an acclaimed rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" at Super Bowl XXV in 1991. The soundtrack of her film debut The Bodyguard (1992) won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year, topped the Billboard 200 for 20 weeks, and remains the best-selling soundtrack album of all time. Its lead single, "I Will Always Love You", won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year and became the best-selling single by a woman in history. Houston continued her work in the film industry, including starring roles in Waiting to Exhale (1995), The Preacher's Wife (1996) and Cinderella (1997). The soundtrack of The Preacher's Wife became the best-selling gospel album of all time.

Houston's first studio album in eight years, My Love Is Your Love (1998), found critical and commercial success, and she renewed her contract with Arista Records for $100 million in 2001, one of the largest recording deals of all time. However, her drug use and a tumultuous marriage to singer Bobby Brown tarnished her "America's Sweetheart" image, overshadowing her next album, Just Whitney (2002). After divorcing Brown, Houston returned to the top of the Billboard 200 with her final album, I Look to You (2009). On February 11, 2012, Houston accidentally drowned in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California, with heart disease and cocaine use as contributing factors. News of her death coincided with the 2012 Grammy Awards and was covered internationally along with her memorial service.

Houston is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with sales of more than 240 million records worldwide. Her first two albums, along with The Bodyguard soundtrack, rank among the best-selling albums of all time and made her the only black artist to score three RIAA diamond-certified albums. "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" and "I Will Always Love You" are among the best-selling singles ever, with the latter being certified diamond by RIAA. Houston scored 11 Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles and remains the only artist to have seven consecutive singles top the chart. She has been inducted into multiple halls and walks of fame. Guinness World Records named Houston the highest-earning posthumous female celebrity. Her assets amounted to $250 million, earned over a 25-year career.

Whitney Elizabeth Houston was born on August 9, 1963, at Presbyterian Hospital in Newark, New Jersey, to Emily "Cissy" (née Drinkard) and John Russell Houston Jr. Cissy was a Grammy-winning gospel and soul singer who was a member of The Drinkard Singers and the founder of The Sweet Inspirations before becoming a solo artist. John was a former Army serviceman who later became an administrator under Newark mayor Kenneth A. Gibson. According to her mother, Houston was named after actress Whitney Blake. Houston was given the nickname "Nippy" by her father.

Whitney's parents were both African-American. Cissy Houston stated that she has partial Dutch and Native American ancestry. Houston was a cousin of singers Dionne and Dee Dee Warwick as well as a distant cousin of opera singer Leontyne Price. Aretha Franklin became an "honorary aunt" while Darlene Love was Houston's godmother. Houston's paternal great-great-grandfather Jeremiah Burke Sanderson was an American abolitionist and advocate for the civil and educational rights of black Americans during the mid-19th century. Houston had three older brothers: paternal half-brother John III; maternal half-brother Gary, a basketball player and singer; and full brother Michael.

At three, Houston witnessed the Newark race riots of 1967. Three years later, in 1970, the Houston family relocated to a suburban area of East Orange, New Jersey. Houston's parents married in the spring of 1964, just months before Houston's first birthday. Initially a happy union, the marriage dissolved by Houston's teen years after Houston's father suffered a near-fatal heart attack. By 17, Houston's parents separated; divorcing over a decade later.

Houston was raised in the Baptist faith. She joined the church choir at New Hope Baptist Church in Newark at the age of five, and she also learned to play piano at New Hope. She later recalled being exposed to the Pentecostal church nearby as well. Houston made her solo performance debut at New Hope singing the hymn "Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah" at the age of 12. When Houston became a teenager, she told her mother that she wanted to pursue a career in music. Throughout her teenage years, she was trained how to sing by Cissy. Along with her mother, her cousins and Franklin, Houston was influenced by singers such as Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight, and Roberta Flack.

Houston attended Franklin Elementary School (now Whitney E. Houston Academy of Creative and Performing Arts) before transferring to Mount Saint Dominic Academy, a Catholic girls' high school in Caldwell, New Jersey, by sixth grade. She graduated from Mount Saint Dominic in 1981.

Houston's professional career began when she joined her mother's band as a background singer at fourteen while Cissy performed at Manhattan cabaret clubs. Houston gave her first solo during Cissy's performance at Manhattan's Town Hall in February 1978, performing "Tomorrow" from the Broadway musical, Annie, where she received her first standing ovation. Houston began a career as a session vocalist backing up artists like her mother, Michael Zager, Chaka Khan and Lou Rawls. Houston was the featured vocalist in Zager's disco song "Life's a Party" (1978). Houston became a fashion model in 1980 after being spotted at Carnegie Hall and signed first with Click Models before moving onto the Wilhelmina Models agency, where she landed the cover of Seventeen. Houston's girl next door charm helped her to land in fashion spreads for Glamour, Cosmopolitan and Young Miss. Houston continued her music career during this period, recording demos of gospel recordings. Houston's vocal talent made her sought after for recording deals, but were turned down by her mother, who insisted that Houston finish high school.

Signing with Tara Productions in September 1981, Houston hired Gene Harvey as her manager, with Daniel Gittleman and Seymour Flics also playing part in managing her. During 1982, Houston auditioned for both Elektra Records and CBS Records. Houston's feature on the song "Memories" from Material's album One Down, led to critical raves, with then-Village Voice critic Robert Christgau calling it "one of the most gorgeous ballads you've ever heard". Producer Paul Jabara later featured her on the ballad, "Eternal Love", issued off his album, Paul Jabara & Friends. After being spotted performing at the Seventh Avenue South nightclub in Manhattan, Gerry Griffith, then the A&R representative for Arista Records convinced label head Clive Davis to make time to see her perform at the Sweetwaters nightclub the following evening. Upon viewing the performance, an impressed Davis offered Houston a recording contract, to which Houston signed on April 10, 1983. Houston was introduced to a national audience in June 1983, performing the song "Home" from the Broadway musical The Wiz on The Merv Griffin Show. During this period, Houston almost landed a role on The Cosby Show before pulling out on the show due to her emerging career. Houston landed a cameo role on Gimme a Break!, was featured in a Canada Dry commercial and also sang commercial jingles, including one for the restaurant brand, Steak & Ale.

Houston did not begin work on an album immediately. The label wanted to make sure no other company signed her away and Davis wanted to ensure he had the right material and producers for her debut album. Some producers passed on the project because of prior commitments. After seeing her perform in New York, Michael Masser paired Houston with Teddy Pendergrass, on the duet, "Hold Me", which appeared on his album, Love Language. Released in May 1984, the song gave Houston her first taste of success, becoming a top-ten hit on the US R&B and adult contemporary charts. Houston also received notice in 1984 after being paired up with Jermaine Jackson, with whom the duet, "Take Good Care of My Heart", was featured on Jackson's Dynamite album, while also appearing with Jackson performing the song and another duet, "Nobody Loves Me Like You Do", on an episode of As the World Turns. All three songs eventually appeared on her debut album.

Whitney Houston was released on Valentine's Day, February 14, 1985. The album received mixed to positive reviews in its initial run, with most of the positive remarks aimed at Houston's vocal ability. Rolling Stone called Houston "one of the most exciting new voices in years" while The New York Times called the album "an impressive, musically conservative showcase for an exceptional vocal talent". Debuting at number 166 on the Billboard 200 on March 30, 1985, the album reached the top ten 23 weeks later. It reached number one in March 1986, starting a 14-week run, which is the longest run for a female debut album in history.