Whitney Houston is known and loved for her many talents. An accomplished singer, her most popular single, “I Will Always Love You” was undoubtedly the most successful song of her lifetime and still remains her biggest hit, with fans referring to it as a true hymn of love. Others know her as an actress, from her role as Cinderella’s fairy godmother to her first movie role in The Bodyguard, where the whole world learned more about her and heard that famous song for the very first time. Some people even know her from her work behind the scenes.
We at Bright Side loved remembering the brightest facts about Whitney Houston, who lived a very interesting, though short, life, and whose work has left a big mark on people’s hearts.
The future singer’s first solo performance took place when she was just 11. She sang at church. Later, she began performing with her mother (who was a singer in clubs) as a backup singer.
However, it was working as a model that became the future star’s first real job. Whitney, who had a gorgeous body shape, couldn’t go unnoticed and she appeared on the covers of popular magazines.
In the ’80s, Whitney firmly decided that she wanted to build her career as a singer. She was signing contracts with recording studios and participating in television shows. But she only managed to become famous within small groups of people. Her true fame came to her after the release of the album, Whitney Houston. Her single, “You Give Good Love” took top positions in the charts, and people started buying the album and talking about the new star.
There were many successful songs later on, but the singer attained superstar status in 1992 after the release of The Bodyguard movie. The audience welcomed the romantic story with delight, but critics smashed the singer’s acting abilities to smithereens. Whitney then won a Golden Raspberry Award nomination for “Worst Actress.”
The ballad, “I Will Always Love You” from the movie was wildly successful! Not only did it become a world hit and the most-sold single among female singers in music history, but it was also considered a hymn of love. This song won multiple awards. Believe it or not, the hit song is actually a cover version of Dolly Parton’s (a country singer) song that was bought especially for the movie. This might be surprising, but Elvis Presley also tried to buy the rights to the song. Unfortunately for him, Dolly turned his offer down.
She also ran into problems when giving her creative input to various movie roles. In the late 1980s, she was heavily attached to a movie adaptation of Dreamgirls and was cast as the character of Deena, but plans fell through when she wanted to perform, “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going,” another character’s song.
That said, she wasn’t necessarily a diva when it came to other actors. When she became attached to a remake of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, she was originally cast as Cinderella herself. Unfortunately, by the time the project went into production, she felt she had aged out of the role and agreed to play the fairy godmother instead, and suggested that Moesha star Brandy play the part. She was also a co-producer of the film.
Whitney was also capable of working behind the scenes, serving as a producer and executive producer on popular children’s films like The Cheetah Girls and The Princess Diaries.
It was mainly the singer’s family that was her team. However, at one time, her father sued her because he believed she had violated business obligations. He demanded $100 million from her, but after 2 years, the lawsuit was dismissed. A few years after the death of her father, Whitney Houston’s stepmother also sued her, demanding that she return the money she received under the insurance.
Nevertheless, the singer believed that having close people on her team was a good decision. Her father even started a company, John Houston Enterprise, just to manage her career. One of her brothers, Gary Garland, also performed as one of her back-up vocalists.
Whitney Houston and her husband Bobby Brown
There were many rumors that swirled around the singer’s personal life. For example, it was said that she was secretly in love with Michael Jackson and that he was in love with her too, but something prevented them from being together. Also, Robyn Crawford, Whitney’s close friend and impresario, said that there was a love connection between her and the singer and that Whitney was a person with untraditional desires.
Before Bobby Brown became her husband, Whitney had affairs with football player Randall Cunningham and actor Eddie Murphy.
The marriage of Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown lasted for 15 years. Journalists wrote that the singer used to have a good reputation before she was with him. All because their marriage was accompanied by incessant scandals, the spouses were brought to justice for cases involving illegal substances, and the singer accused her husband of adultery.
Despite all the disturbances, the couple had a daughter together named Bobbi Kristina. Whitney adored her daughter, though the girl went through some problems in her teenage years. After many years of scandals and arrests, Whitney decided to file for divorce. 14-year-old Kristina decided to stay and live with her mother, even though Bobby Brown wanted to get custody of her.
Whitney Houston died in February 2012 under mysterious circumstances. Her body was found in a room at The Beverly Hilton. In 2015, her daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown, died in the hospital at the age of 22 after a 6-month-long coma.
Whitney died shortly before the Grammy Awards ceremony, which was changed and dedicated to her. People from all over the world came to say goodbye to Whitney.
In 2017, Nick Broomfield’s movie, Whitney: Can I Be Me was released. In the movie, the director shared details about the singer’s life and death.
After having written about Whitney’s brightest hit, we couldn’t resist playing it and diving into the nostalgia. Do you remember this singer?
I was fortunate enough to have been her personal chef for several years.
I've cooked for many stars, but no one treated me as well as nippy did.
I've got countless stories I could tell, but out of respect for her, I'll never tell anyone.
Maybe my dogs. Lol
