Grammy-winning singer and actor Whitney Houston, one of the most talented performers of her generation who lived a turbulent personal life and admitted drug use, died on Saturday in a Beverly Hills hotel room. She was 48.
A Beverly Hills police officer told reporters they were called to the Beverly Hilton, in Los Angeles, at around 15:20 PST and that emergency personnel found Houston's body in a fourth-floor room, and she was pronounced dead at 15:55.
"She has been positively identified by friends and family [who] were with her at the hotel, and next of kin have already been notified," Lieutenant Mark Rosen told reporters.
Police said there were no obvious signs of criminal intent at the scene and her death is under investigation.
Houston was in Los Angeles for the Grammy Awards, the music industry's biggest honours programme that will take place on Sunday night. She died hours before she was expected to perform at record producer Clive Davis's annual pre-Grammy party on Saturday, which is held at the Beverly Hilton
Acclaim
Houston, inspired by soul singers in her New Jersey family, including mother Cissy Houston and cousins Dionne Warwick and the late Dee Dee Warwick, as well as her godmother Aretha Franklin, became one of the most celebrated female singers of all time, taking multiple Emmy, Grammy and Billboard Music awards.
Her popularity soared in the 1980s and 1990s with consecutive No. 1 hits including the smash single I Will Always Love You, from the soundtrack of the feature film The Bodyguard, in which she starred.
She also appeared in Waiting to Exhale (1995) and The Preacher's Wife (1996).
By the early 1990s, Houston had become the queen of pop music, achieving great critical and commercial acclaim, but her personal life was becoming troubled. In 1992 she married singer Bobby Brown, who had a bad-boy reputation, and during their 14 years together had a tumultuous relationship fuelled by drugs.
In 2000, she and Brown were stopped at an airport in Hawaii and security guards discovered dagga in their luggage.
The pair also starred in reality TV series, Being Bobby Brown, which painted an often unflattering portrait of the pair.
The last 10 years of Houston's life were dominated by drug use, rumours of relapses and trips to rehab. In a 2002 TV interview, she admitted using dagga, cocaine, alcohol and prescription drugs.
Comeback
She launched a comeback tour in 2009 and in April 2010 she called media reports she was using drugs again "ridiculous". In May 2011, Houston enrolled in a drug and alcohol rehab programme.
Reactions came pouring in from fans and friends in the music industry.
"I am absolutely heartbroken at the news of Whitney's passing," legendary music producer Quincy Jones said in a statement. "... I always regretted not having had the opportunity to work with her. She was a true original and a talent beyond compare. I will miss her terribly."
Neil Portnow, chief executive of the Recording Academy that gives out the Grammys, called her "one of the world's greatest pop singers of all time who leaves behind a robust musical soundtrack spanning the past three decades".
Pop star Rihanna posted on Twitter "No words, just tears", and rapper Nicki Minaj tweeted: "Jesus Christ, not Whitney Houston. Greatest of all time."
Awesome Career.... from WIki...
"Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, producer, and model. At the time of her death, Houston was the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records.[3] Her list of awards includes two Emmy Awards, six Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among a total of 415 career awards as of 2010. Houston was also one of the world's best-selling music artists, having sold over 170 million albums, singles and videos worldwide.[4][5] Inspired by prominent soul singers in her family, including her mother Cissy Houston, cousins Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick, and her godmother Aretha Franklin, Houston began singing with New Jersey church's junior gospel choir at age 11.[6] After she began performing alongside her mother in night clubs in the New York City area, she was discovered by Arista Records label head Clive Davis. Houston released seven studio albums and three movie soundtrack albums, all of which have diamond, multi-platinum, platinum or gold certification.
Houston was the only artist to chart seven consecutive No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hits ("Saving All My Love for You", "How Will I Know", "Greatest Love of All", "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)", "Didn't We Almost Have It All", "So Emotional" and "Where Do Broken Hearts Go"). She was the second artist behind Elton John and the only female artist to have two number-one Top Billboard 200 Album awards (formerly "Top Pop Album") on the Billboard magazine year-end charts. Houston's 1985 debut album Whitney Houston, became the best-selling debut album by a female act at the time of its release. The album was named Rolling Stone's best album of 1986, and was ranked at number 254 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.[7] Her second studio album Whitney (1987), became the first album by a female artist to debut at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart.[7] Houston's crossover appeal on the popular music charts as well as her prominence on MTV, starting with her video for "How Will I Know",[8] influenced several African-American female artists to follow in her footsteps.[9][10]
Houston's first acting role was as the star of the feature film The Bodyguard (1992). The film's original soundtrack won the 1994 Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Its lead single "I Will Always Love You", became the best-selling single by a female artist in music history. With the album, Houston became the first act (solo or group, male or female) to sell more than a million copies of an album within a single week period.[7] The album makes her the only female act in the top 10 list of the best-selling albums of all time, at number four. Houston continued to star in movies and contribute to their soundtracks, including the films Waiting to Exhale (1995) and The Preacher's Wife (1996). The Preacher's Wife soundtrack became the best-selling gospel album in history.[11] Three years after the release of her fourth studio album My Love Is Your Love (1998), she renewed her recording contract with Arista Records.[11] She released her fifth studio album Just Whitney in 2002, and the Christmas-themed One Wish: The Holiday Album in 2003. In 2009, Houston released her seventh studio album I Look to You.
On February 11, 2012, Houston was found dead in her guest room at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, in Beverly Hills, California, of causes not immediately known.[12]
another figure become a tragic victim of the fame syndrome ...