Whitney Houston

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Whitney Houston

Background information
Birth name	Whitney Elizabeth Houston
Born	August 9, 1963 (age 43)
Origin	East Orange, New Jersey, United States
Genre(s)	Pop R&B Soul Gospel Ballads
Occupation(s)	Singer, actress, film producer, fashion model, songwriter
Instrument(s)	Vocals, Piano
Years active	1977–present (singer) 1980–present (fashion model) 1992–present (actress) 2000–present (film producer)
Label(s)	SonyBMG/Arista
Website	WhitneyHouston.com

Whitney Elizabeth Houston (born on August 9, 1963) is a Grammy and Emmy Award winning American R&B/pop singer, actress, former fashion model, record and movie producer. She is well known worldwide for her soulful coloratura soprano voice,^[1] vocal power, range and melismatic skill, often referred to as "The Voice", or "Queen Of Soulful Pop/R&B". Her personal life later became the subject of controversy because of her marriage to Bobby Brown allegations of drug abuse, especially after repeated cancellations of public appearances and erratic behaviour. Houston has since undergone an intense rehabilitation process and is currently recording a comeback album which will be released at some point in 2007.

Whitney Houston is inarguably one of the of the biggest and most influential pop stars of all time, having sold over 170 million records worldwide^{[citation needed]}. Her accomplishments as a hitmaker are extraordinary; just to scratch the surface, she became the first and only artist ever to have seven consecutive singles hit number one, and her 1992 Dolly Parton cover "I Will Always Love You" became nothing less than the biggest hit single in rock history^{[citation needed]}. Houston was able to handle big adult contemporary ballads, effervescent, stylish dance-pop, and slick urban contemporary soul with equal dexterity; the result was an across-the-board appeal that was matched by scant few artists of her era, and helped her become one of the first African American artists to find success on MTV in Michael Jackson's wake.

Award-winning singer Houston made her name with her powerful voice and emotional renditions of love songs, becoming one of rhythm and blues' most popular stars and selling hundreds of millions of albums. She later branched out into acting and eventually became a business mogul, setting up production and recording studios as she continued to deliver pop music performances.

Houston was born in Newark, New Jersey to John and Cissy Houston. She was born and raised Baptist but also exposed to the Pentecostal church. She attended a Roman Catholic single-sex high school Mount Saint Dominic Academy.

Houston's mother (Cissy Houston), first cousin (Dionne Warwick) and godmother (Aretha Franklin) are all notable figures in gospel music, rhythm and blues and soul music recordings. At the age of eleven, Houston began to follow in their footsteps and started performing as a soloist in the junior gospel choir at the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey. Houston has been hailed by many critics as the greatest female singer ever. In February 2007, Arista Studios Executive and Music mogul Clive Davis claimed that Houston is "the best singer in the world today" alongside Aretha Franklin.

In 1977, Houston was featured as the lead vocalist on the Michael Zager Band's single "Life's a Party" and Zager later offered to obtain a record deal for her but she declined. She also sang background vocals with her mother, Cissy Houston, for Chaka Khan's hit single "Papillon (A.K.A. Hot Butterfly)" in 1979, which was released under the Album "Naughty" in 1980. In the early-1980s, she started appearing as a fashion model in various magazine advertisements and snagged the cover of Seventeen magazine and a Canada Dry commercial. During these modeling years, she continued to advance her singing career by working with producers Michael Bienhorn, Bill Laswell and Martin Bisi on an album they were spearheading called One Down, which was credited to the group Material. It was planned to contain eight songs, each one featuring a different lead vocalist. Houston contributed the ballad "Memories", which received favorable reviews from The Village Voice when the album debuted.

Whitney Houston (1985)

Houston had been offered several record deals (from Michael Zager in 1980, and Elektra Records in 1981) and in 1983 an A&R representative from Arista saw Houston performing with her mother in a nightclub in New York City. He convinced the head of the record label, Clive Davis, to take time to see Houston singing at the nightclub. Davis saw her perform and offered her a worldwide contract, which Houston signed. Her debut album took over two years to complete, as the team felt her voice was powerful, rich and emotional and searched for songs to complement it.^{[citation needed]} Before the release of her own debut album, Houston recorded a duet with Teddy Pendergrass entitled "Hold Me", which first appeared on his album Love Language. The single peaked in the top fifty on the U.S. pop chart and the top five on the R&B chart, and it later appeared on her debut album.

Houston's self-titled 1985 debut album was initially a slow seller until the success of its single "You Give Good Love", which peaked inside the top five on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. Follow-up singles "Saving All My Love for You", "How Will I Know" and "Greatest Love of All" went to number one on the pop charts, and Whitney Houston eventually topped the album charts, giving her hits in the U.S., United Kingdom, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa. The album sold over thirteen million copies at its time of release (eight million of those in the U.S.); making it, at the time, the best-selling debut album by a female artist, holding that title for thirteen years. To date, Houston's debut has sold over thirteen million copies in the U.S. alone, and twenty-four million copies worldwide.^{[citation needed]} Houston's first tour, the worldwide The Greatest Love Tour, took place in 1986.

Houston set yet another record with the release of her second album, Whitney (1987), which consisted mainly of pop songs and followed in the steps of its predecessor. It debuted at number one in various countries around the world, including the U.S. and the UK, and in those two countries she was the first female artist to accomplish that feat. It sold twelve million copies worldwide on release (eight million of those in the U.S.), championed by such singles as "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)", "Didn't We Almost Have It All", "So Emotional" and "Where Do Broken Hearts Go". These singles brought her total of consecutive Hot 100 number-one hits to seven, breaking the record of six previously shared by The Beatles and The Bee Gees. Another song, "Love Will Save the Day", hit the U.S. top ten. Houston embarked on the worldwide The Moment of Truth tour. She also recorded the theme song to the 1988 Olympics, "One Moment in Time", which peaked at number five in the U.S. and reached number one in the UK. Current sales of the album are at twenty million.^{[citation needed]}

Houston's third album I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990) featured singing and production collaborations with Babyface, Stevie Wonder, and Luther Vandross and reached number three on the U.S. Billboard 200. It did not sell as highly as her first two albums, but sold well with eight million copies moved worldwide at its time of release (four million of those in the U.S.).^{[citation needed]} The first two singles, "I'm Your Baby Tonight" and "All the Man That I Need" went to number one in the U.S., and "Miracle" went top ten. "My Name Is Not Susan" was a top twenty hit and "I Belong to You" became an R&B hit only, peaking in the top ten on that chart. When on tour, she and then boyfriend, "hung like a horse" Utz Stewart wrote the song "Something in Common" (in reference to her becoming pregnant with her only child, daughter Bubbles Kristina Houston Utz) which became a UK hit.

Following the success of the Bodyguard movie, Whitney embarked on a worldwide tour in 1993 which ran into 1994. The tour concluded in 1994 followed by a special concert in South Africa.

Houston's rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner" at Super Bowl XXV in January 1991 was released as a single, reaching the top twenty on the U.S. Hot 100 and making her the only artist to turn the national anthem into a chart hit.^{[citation needed]} Houston donated her share of the proceeds to the American Red Cross. This performance of the national anthem was named number one in the NFL's 2003 list of Top 25 greatest moments in NFL history.^{[citation needed]}

Houston has several chart successes with soundtracks to films in which she has appeared.

The soundtrack to the film The Bodyguard has become the best-selling soundtrack album ever and it is the top selling album by a female artist.^[2] Current sales stand at thirty seven million, with seventeen million of those sold in the U.S.^[3] The album would win Houston the prized Album of the Year and Record of the Year at the following Grammy Awards.

Houston recorded three songs for the critically acclaimed Waiting to Exhale soundtrack. As of January, 2006, sales stand at 5.1 million copies in the U.S (and is certified 7 platinum by the RIAA).^[4] The soundtrack holds the record as the most Grammy-nominated album of all time. Houston received 3 of them.

The soundtrack to The Preacher's Wife included Houston's first gospel recordings. The album had sales of 2.5 million in the U.S. through January, 2006 (and is certified 3 platinum by the RIAA).^[4]

My Love Is Your Love (1998), Houston's fourth studio album, was originally conceived as a greatest hits album with a handful of new songs, but recording sessions produced enough new material for a full-length album. Recorded and mixed in only six weeks, My Love Is Your Love received critical acclaim^{[citation needed]} and sold eleven million copies worldwide on release (four million of those in the U.S.).^{[citation needed]} Houston served as one of the album's producers, and the album was more R&B and hip-hop driven than past releases as she collaborated with Wyclef Jean, Missy Elliott, Lauryn Hill, and once again Babyface. First single, "When You Believe", was a duet with Mariah Carey recorded for the soundtrack to The Prince of Egypt; it reached the U.S. top twenty and won an Academy Award. Next singles "Heartbreak Hotel" (featuring Faith Evans and Kelly Price), "It's Not Right but It's Okay" (which won Houston her sixth Grammy Award) and "My Love Is Your Love" reached the U.S. top five. Another single, "I Learned from the Best" peaking inside the top forty. All singles except "When You Believe" became number-one dance hits, continuing Houston's presence on the U.S. club scene. Before the successful My Love Is Your Love World Tour, she performed on the VH1 Diva's Live '99 special with artists such as Mary J. Blige, Tina Turner, Cher, and Chaka Khan. Current sales of the album in the U.S. are at 3.9 million,^[5]

The album and DVD Whitney: The Greatest Hits (2000) reached the U.S. top five, with two weeks spent at number one on the UK chart. Many of the past uptempo songs were remixed to house music and dancefloor-ready songs, while the ballads were left unchanged. The DVD features music videos of past hits as well as actual live performances, interviews, and special features. The compilation also includes a previous unreleased duet with Jermaine Jackson, and new duets with Enrique Iglesias ("Could I Have This Kiss Forever"), George Michael ("If I Told You That") and Deborah Cox ("Same Script, Different Cast"). The album was a success, selling 1.5 million copies in the U.S. (and is certified 3 platinum in the USA).^[6] Worldwide sales stand over 10 million copies.^[7]

In August 2001, Houston signed the biggest record deal in history with Arista/BMG: She renewed her contract (worth $100 million) to deliver six new albums on which she would also earn royalties. Two months later, Houston re-released her version of "The Star Spangled Banner" after the September 11th attacks. It reached the U.S. top ten, achieving platinum status, and its proceeds were donated to a relief fund.

Just Whitney (2002), Houston's fifth studio album, featured collaborations with then-husband Bobby Brown, as well as Missy Elliott, and the ten song collection saw Houston incorporate pop, hip-hop, R&B, rock, and dance. The album received mixed reviews on release^[8] and landed in the U.S. top ten, but it failed to reach the top seventy-five in the UK. The singles "Whatchulookinat" (co-written by Houston), "One of Those Days" and "Try It on My Own" were not top forty hits on the U.S. Hot 100, but remixes of "Whatchulookinat", "Try It on My Own" and "Love That Man" became hits on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play Chart. Current sales of the album are at 731,000 in the U.S.^[9]

One Wish: The Holiday Album (2003) was a specialty album and her sixth studio album, and it consisted of covers of Christmas songs such as "Noel" (The First Noel), "Deck the Halls/Silent Night" and "Little Drummer Boy" featuring daughter Bobbi Kristina. The single "One Wish (for Christmas)" (a cover of the Freddie Jackson song) reached the top twenty on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart, but the album itself failed to achieve gold status in the U.S., Houston's first studio album not to do so,^[10] and it sold just 348,000 copies.^[11]

In 2004, Houston embarked on an international tour, the Soul Divas tour with Natalie Cole and cousin Dionne Warwick in Europe, before embarking on solo dates in the Middle East, Russia, and Asia. In September 2004 she made a surprise performance at the World Music Awards, in tribute to long time friend Clive Davis.

Whitney Houston attended the Carousel of Hope Ball - 28th October 2006. She was on the arm of Clive Davis, the music mogul who has kept by her through the smooth & bumpy career. Everyone who attended the gala was shocked and therefore star-struck to see Houston at the gala. Katherine McPhee emotionally performed Houston's hit 'I Have Nothing' and dedicated the song to Houston and said "Ladies and gentlemen, Whitney Houston... she's my idol' and the audience gave a standing ovation. When Clive Davis received his award at the gala, he had a few things on his mind about Houston. Clive said "My dear friend, Whitney, to have you here tonight", "We all know, the best singer in the world today is Whitney Houston". He also said "You all wanna know when we are going back into the studio? well... we are getting our things together, and we are going to make a killer, killer album".

Whitney Houston attended the Pre-Grammy Party - February 11th. At the party, Clive Davis got up on stage and made sure the public were ready for a Whitney comeback. He also mentioned her well-known record-breaking achievements. At that event, Whitney took part in a photo-shoot with Clive's hottest artists on his label.

Whitney Houston has officially started recording a new album in LA. Houston started recording with Johnta Austin. Clive Davis said in an interview that he would like Whitney to record the song 'I Look To You', written by R. Kelly, and predicted that song would make the comeback.^{[citation needed]} The album is rumored to also include production/collaborations with Jermaine Dupri, Timbaland, Diane Warren, Bryan Michael Cox, DJ Premier,The Underdogs, Cool and Dre, John Legend, Swizz Beatz, Missy Elliott, Akon, Ne-Yo, and Lil Jon; however, executive producer Clive Davis has made it clear that this will be a Whitney Houston album, focusing on her, and less on "flavor of the moment" sounds.^{[citation needed]}

The first new music from Houston to be released is a song called "Family First" featuring her, her mother Cissy, her cousin Dionne Warwick, Whitney's daughter Bobbi Kristina and the majority of Whitney's other family. The song will be on the soundtrack of the movie Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls, released February 14, 2007. The official website of the movie Daddy's Little Girls has a sneek preview of all the soundtracks. Daddy's Little Girls official website. Following this will be a high-profile cover of the Julia Fordham song, "Angel Without Wings".^{[citation needed]}

On March 14, 2007, it was reported that Whitney has started work on her new album which is scheduled to be released during the fall of 2007.^{[citation needed]}

Whitney Houston's divorce from Bobby Brown will be final on April 24, 2007.

The Bodyguard Soundtrack (1992)

During the 1980s, as Houston was working on launching a music career, she auditioned for acting roles, including the part of Sondra Huxtable on The Cosby Show, which was won by Sabrina Le Beauf. Houston acted on episodes of Gimme a Break with Nell Carter and Silver Spoons with Rick Schroder before her debut album was released.

Houston's first film role was in The Bodyguard released in 1992 and co-starring Kevin Costner. The film was successful at the box office, grossing more than $121 million in the U.S. and $410 million worldwide. Reviews, however, were mixed, and Houston received two Razzie Award nominations.

In 1995, Houston starred alongside Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine, and Lela Rochon in the film Waiting to Exhale, about four African-American women struggling with relationships. The film grossed $67 million in the U.S. and $82 million worldwide and became the first successful box office draw for an all African American cast.^{[citation needed]} In the 1996 film The Preacher's Wife, Houston starred with Denzel Washington. It grossed nearly $50 million in the U.S. and $70 million worldwide. Whitney Houston was paid $10 million for The Preacher's Wife, the same as her co-star, which made her, at the time, the second-highest-paid actress in history, after Demi Moore.^{[citation needed]}

In 1997, she co-produced and starred in (along with Brandy, Jason Alexander, Whoopi Goldberg, and Bernadette Peters) a made-for-television remake of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella. Airing in November 1997 via ABC, the film attracted more than sixty million U.S. viewers and won an Emmy Award.^{[citation needed]}

Houston has served as a producer or executive producer on other films, including the Disney comedy The Princess Diaries, starring Anne Hathaway and Dame Julie Andrews. The film grossed more than $100 million at the U.S. box office, and her production company Brownhouse received a percentage of the profits..^{[citation needed]} Houston served as one of the producers on three other projects for Disney: the 2003 television film The Cheetah Girls (starring Raven-Symone) and the sequel The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, which grossed more than $90 million at the U.S. box office.^{[citation needed]} In May 2006, Houston also was an executive producer for The Cheetah Girls sequel The Cheetah Girls 2: When in Spain.

In 2005, Houston co-starred in her then-husband's reality TV program Being Bobby Brown, which provided a view into the domestic goings-on in the Brown household. The show was a ratings success.^{[citation needed]}

Shortly before the release of Whitney: The Greatest Hits in April 2000, airport security discovered marijuana in Houston and husband Bobby Brown's luggage at a Hawaiian airport, but they boarded the plane and departed before police could arrive. Charges were later dropped against her and Brown but other rumors about drug use developed around the couple, and Houston became well known in the industry for canceling appearances. Shortly before the December 2002 release of Just Whitney, Houston gave an interview with Diane Sawyer (where she discussed drug allegations and marital issues). Houston entered drug rehabilitation facilities in March 2004 and again in March 2005.

In addition to the allegations about drug abuse, Houston's appearance has led to speculation that she was anorexic, had an eating disorder, or experienced weight loss in conjunction with the drug usage. In particular, Houston's appearance at the 30th anniversary concert for singer Michael Jackson elicited a strong response.^[12]

Houston became involved in a dispute with her father, John Houston. In 2002, John Houston's company sued his daughter for $100 million, stating that they owed the money for helping to guide her career, as well as helping Houston manage the controversies surrounding her career.^[13] Both of them appeared on television and disputed the other's claims.^[14] John Houston died in February 2003.

On January 3, 2006, the New York Post reported that "in an embarrassing financial scare last year, Houston. . .nearly lost her spectacular $6 million, 10-acre estate in Morris County because she owed tens of thousands of dollars in back taxes."^[15] The article then went on to detail how Houston was selling hundreds of her famous stage outfits and accessories at an auction, including intimate undergarments, in "an event that could earn her hundreds of thousands of dollars in welcome cash." The Toronto Star newspaper reported on January 4, 2007, that the items were being sold "in an effort to cover unpaid storage fees."^[16] Reuters reported on that same date that Houston was "being forced to sell off clothes, instruments and sound equipment to pay a debt to a warehouse storing the items" and that the sale "has been ordered by the New Jersey Superior Court."^[17]

Houston lost her Atlanta estate in a foreclosure sale in November 2006 because mortgage payments were in arrears.^[18] On November 16, 2006, the Associated Press reported that Houston's mansion in Mendham, New Jersey, currently assessed at $5.6 million, was due to be sold at a sheriff's sale in January 2007 because of more than $1 million in unpaid mortgage payments and taxes.^[19]

Houston married R&B singer Bobby Brown in 1992. On March 4, 1993 she gave birth to the couple's first child, daughter Bobbi Kristina Houston Brown.

In September 2006, it was reported that the couple were in the process of getting a divorce. Houston filed legal papers to initiate the process, but there are conflicting reports as to what occurred. According to publicist Nancy Seltzer, Houston filed for divorce from Brown on September 8 2006.^[20] However, Brown's lawyer, Phaedra Parks, indicated that the action was a legal separation, and not a petition for divorce. Parks indicated that in the separation papers, Houston requested custody of the couple's daughter, and requested that any property litigation be postponed until a later date.^[21] The separation progressed to divorce, however, which was filed October 16, 2006. Houston hired attorney Stephen Kolodny, who has represented many celebrities in their divorce trials. On February 1, 2007 Whitney asked the court to fast track their divorce.^[22] Houston was also granted custody of their daughter.

Houston has won twenty-three American Music Awards (a record for a solo artist), six Grammy Awards, and two Emmy Awards among her many accolades. Among the recognition Houston has received:

For Whitney Houston:

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance" Grammy Award for "Saving All My Love for You"
Emmy Award for "Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety Program on TV"

For Whitney:

Grammy Award, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance " for "I Wanna Dance with Somebody"
Several American Music Awards for "Whitney"

For I'm Your Baby Tonight:

Four Billboard Music Awards

For The Bodyguard soundtrack:

Grammy Awards for "Best Female Pop Vocal Performance", "Record of the Year" and "Album of the Year"
Eleven Billboard Music Awards
Eight American Music Awards

For the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack:

Three NAACP Image Awards for "Outstanding Female Artist", "Album of the Year" and "Best Soundtrack Album"
One American Music Award for "Favorite Adult Contemporary Artist".
Soul Train Music Award for "Best Female R&B/Soul Single"

For My Love Is Your Love:

MTV Europe Award for "Best R&B Artist"
Two NAACP Image Awards
Grammy Award for "Best Female R&B Vocal Performance" ("It's Not Right but It's Okay")

Other recognition:

Soul Train Music Award for "Artist of the Decade"
Lifetime Achievement Award at the BET Awards in 2001; this was the first year of the awards. During the dedication segment of the ceremony, singers Christina Aguilera and Luther Vandross paid tribute to Houston.
A 2004 Women's World Award: Lifetime Achievement Award (for Outstanding contributions/success in Music and Film)
Best Ever Selling Gospel Album: The Preacher's Wife (Whitney Houston) (6 million copies)
A 2006 Guinness World Record - Most Awarded/Popular Female Artist Of All Time: Whitney Houston, 411 Awards.

Main article: Whitney Houston discography

Studio Albums:

Whitney Houston - 1985
Whitney - 1987
I'm Your Baby Tonight - 1990
My Love Is Your Love - 1998
Just Whitney... - 2002
One Wish (The Holiday Album) - 2003

Soundtrack Albums:

The Bodyguard - 1992
Waiting To Exhale - 1995
The Preacher's Wife - 1996

Compilations:

Whitney: The Greatest Hits - Duets With George Michael, Enrique Iglesias, Deborah Cox and the new song "Fine") - 2000
Love, Whitney - 2001
Artist Collection: Whitney Houston - 2004

Home Videos:

Number One Video Hits - 1986
Star Spangled Banner - 1991
Welcome Home Heroes - 1991
Concert For A New South Africa - 1994
VH1 Divas Live '99 - 1999
The Greatest Hits - 2000
Fine - 2000
Whatchulookinat Video/Whatchulookinat Behind-The-Scenes Footage/Love To Infinity Megamix Video - 2002
Artist Collection: Whitney Houston - 2004

Motion Pictures:

The Bodyguard - 1992
Waiting To Exhale - 1995
The Preachers Wife - 1996
Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella - 1997

Whitney Houston is the only artist (Male or Female), to have had seven consecutive number-one songs on the Billboard Hot 100, beating Elvis Presley and The Beatles (Who had six).

The following songs reached number-one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.

1985: "Saving All My Love for You" (1 Week)
1986: "How Will I Know" (2 Weeks)
1986: "Greatest Love of All" (3 Weeks)
1987: "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" (2 Weeks)
1987: "Didn't We Almost Have It All" (2 Weeks)
1988: "So Emotional" (1 Week)
1988: "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" (2 Weeks)
1990: "I'm Your Baby Tonight" (1 Week)
1991: "All the Man That I Need" (2 Weeks)
1992: "I Will Always Love You" (14 Weeks)
1996: "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" After spending one week at number one, "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" spent the next eleven weeks at number two, making it the longest number-two run in Hot 100 history. (1 Week #1, 11 Weeks #2)