The Greatest Love of All

I have nothing if I don't have you - Whitney Houston

Late last night news broke that legendary singer Whitney Houston had died. She was at a Beverly Hills Hilton hotel getting ready to attend Clive Davis' annual pre-Grammy party when her lifeless body was found. Early reports say that she was found head-first in the bathtub when a hairdresser came in to check on her after an hour of waiting for her to exit. Houston's passing concludes the tragedy that her life had become as fame, fortune, and drug use destroyed one of the most beautiful and talented woman the world has ever seen.

Whitney Houston was born in Newark, New Jersey where she first started singing in the church choir. She was discovered by Clive Davis as a teen after she began performing in night clubs with her mother. She began singing backup vocals with stars such as Chaka Khan and Jermaine Jackson before releasing her self titled debut album in 1985. With classics like "Saving All My Love for You" and "Greatest Love of All" Whitney became an instant star. By the end of the 1980s Houston was the biggest name in the world next to Michael Jackson. As she would enter the 1990s the decade would prove to be the best and worst of her life.

In the early 90s Whitney began dating New Edition bad boy Bobby Brown, against many of her friends' warnings. The two were married in 1992 and eventually had a daughter together. Later in that same year Houston would star in The Bodyguard alongside Kevin Coster, which began a successful acting career. The movie's soundtrack (yes, when movies actually had soundtracks that mattered) became one of the best selling albums ever, and spawned the Dolly Parton remake "I Will Always Love You". The song stayed on top of the Billboard charts for 14 weeks. It seemed destined that Whitney would go on to become one of the biggest female entertainers of all time.

By the late 90s Whitney's career, and more importantly her life, began to spiral out of control. There had been rumors of drug use within Whitney's and Bobby's marriage. Houston was accused of erratic behavior, and her voice and live performances suffered. After signing a $100 million record contract (the biggest in history) Houston performed at Michael Jackson's 30th anniversary concert, where concerns about her appearance resurfaced. Whitney's personal problems became public when her and Bobby became filming their reality show Being Bobby Brown. Viewers were watching the downfall of  Whitney "hell to the no" Houston every week on their television.

In recent years it seemed like Whitney was beginning to make a comeback. She divorced Bobby Brown, and had not made any crazy appearances. Her last album I Look To You reached number 1 on the Billboard charts, showing that the icon still had the voice. Whitney was looking and sounding good, and it looked like this new image was here to stay before Don Lemon broke the news to all of us last night on CNN. In a sad and ironic twist, Whitney was on her way to see Clive Davis, the same man who discovered her more than thirty years ago.

With her unfortunate passing, it's important to remember the music. Like Michael Jackson, we all grew up on Whitney Houston. At every bbq in the Summer a few Whitney joints were necessary to make it right. Her music touched everyone. Even the thugs get up and dance when they hear "How Will I Know?". Through all her personal problems we'll always remember the voice. She had that voice that made you feel good inside, and when you heard it you knew exactly who it was. Even though she hasn't been relavent in the last ten years, whenever a new singer's voice is compared it's always to Whitney Houston, and it's never as good as she would sing it. Whitney's death is just another example who the evils of life can grab a hold of anyone, no matter who rich or famous you are. So today just turn on a Whitney song and just reminisce. We probably will never hear a voice so pure and strong, and with so much soul. It's a shame that our biggest stars seem to always have the biggest problems also, but I guess that's just life. So today is for Whitney, and we will always love you.

Whitney Houston

August 9, 1963 ~ February 11, 2012