Whitney Houston biography: 13 things about singer born in Newark, New Jersey

Whitney Elizabeth Houston was an African-American singer and actress born in Newark, New Jersey, United States to former U.S. Army serviceman and Newark city administrator John Russell Houston Jr. and gospel singer Emily “Cissy” Drinkard Houston. Gary Garland is Whitney’s half-brother while Dionne Warwick, Dee Dee Warwick and Leontyne Price are her cousins.

Among the awards Whitney received were 22 American Music Awards, 16 Billboard Music Awards, 14 World Music Awards, eight Grammy Awards and two Emmy Awards. She is one of the world’s best-selling artists of all time.

On February 11, 2012, Whitney was found dead in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles County, California, USA. On February 19, 2012, she was buried in Fairview Cemetery in Westfield, New Jersey next to her father.

On March 22, 2012, the Los Angeles County coroner’s office reported that her death was caused by drowning and the effects of atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use and the amount of cocaine found in her body indicated that she used the substance shortly before her death. Toxicology results revealed additional drugs in her system namely diphenhydramine (Benadryl), alprazolam (Xanax), cannabis and cyclobenzaprine (Flexeril).

Whitney was raised Baptist and she was 5’8″ tall. Here are 13 more things about her:

1. In 1974, she started performing as a soloist in the junior gospel choir at the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark where she also learned to play the piano. In 1977, she became a backup singer on the Michael Zager Band‘s single “Life’s a Party. In 1979, she sang background vocals for Chaka Khan and Lou Rawls.
2. In 1981, she graduated from Mount Saint Dominic Academy, a Catholic girls’ high school in Caldwell, New Jersey. In the early 1980s, after a photographer saw her singing with her mother at Carnegie Hall in New York City, New York, USA. She started working as a fashion model and went on to become the first woman of color to grace the cover of the Seventeen magazine.
3. Her self-titled debut album was released in 1985 followed by “Whitney” in 1987, “I’m Your Baby Tonight” in 1990, “My Love is Your Love” in 1998, “Just Whitney” in 2002 and “One: Wish: The Holiday Album” in 2003.  
4. She and her best friend Robyn Crawford met when they were teenagers. Crawford became her roommate and executive assistant. They were rumored to be lovers, which they both denied in 1987. In 1989, she established the Whitney Houston Foundation for Children.
5. In 1992, she starred opposite Kevin Costner in “The Bodyguard,” which marked her acting debut. She also starred in “Waiting to Exhale” in 1995, “The Preacher’s Wife” in 1996, “Cinderella” in 1997 and “Sparkle” in 2012.
6. From 1992 to 2007, she was married to Bobby Brown. In 1993, she gave birth to their daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown and she received 11 Billboard Music Awards.
7. In 1994, she and Michael Jackson each received eight wins at the America Music Awards.
8. Her seventh and final studio album “I Look to You” was released on August 28, 2009 via Sony Music in Europe, on August 31, 2009 via Arista Records in the U.S and on October 19, 2009 via RCA Records in the United Kingdom. 
9. In 2001, she became the first artist to be given a BET Lifetime Achievement Award. In an interview with Diane Sawyer in 2002, she admitted to using alcohol, marijuana, cocaine and pills and said Bobby had never hit her but acknowledged that she had hit him.
10. Her father started John Houston Enterprise to manage her career but the company was ran by its president Kevin Skinner not her father. In 2002, Skinner filed a breach of contract lawsuit against her and sued for $100 million. Her father died in February 2003. The lawsuit was dismissed on April 5, 2004.
11. In an interview with Oprah Winfrey in September 2009, she revealed that she and Bobby used drugs during their marriage, that her drug use was light before “The Bodyguard” but she used drugs more heavily after the film’s success and the birth of Bobbi Kristina. She also said her drug use continued after attending a 30-day rehabilitation program.
12. In May 2011, she enrolled in a rehabilitation center again, citing drug and alcohol problems. On August 9, 2011, she turned 48.
13. On February 9, 2012, she visited Brandy and Monica at their rehearsals for Clive Davis‘s pre-Grammy Awards party at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills. At around 3:30 p.m. on February 11, 2012, paramedics found her submerged in the bathtub and unresponsive in Suite 434 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills. She was pronounced dead at 3:30 p.m.