Pop Vocal Legend Whitney Houston Found Dead

Singing sensation Whitney Houston, 48, was found unresponsive in a bathtub of a fourth-floor room at the Beverly Hilton and declared dead by police at 3:55 p.m. Saturday 11, February 2012.

Some prescription pill bottles were discovered in the hotel room, but sources told us there was no evidence the six-time Grammy winner had been drinking alcohol. It is unclear if the singer—who famously battled cocaine addiction—had drowned, overdosed or died of other causes. Her body has been turned over to the Los Angeles County coroner’s office.

Beverly Hills police Lt. Mark Rosen said a member of Houston’s entourage made an emergency call at 3:43 p.m. Houston’s body remained at the scene for several hours until it was turned over to coroner’s investigators for an autopsy. The media and fans flocked to the Beverly Hilton Saturday evening upon hearing of the singer’s death, hoping to catch a glimpse of her body being removed from the hotel.

Houston’s body arrived at the Los Angeles County coroner’s office about 11 hours after she was declared dead at the Beverly Hilton, a coroner’s lieutenant said.

The gross autopsy—examination of the body and the organs—could be done as early as Sunday, but toxicology tests, which would implicate any drugs—legal or illegal—in her death, could take nearly a month to complete.

“The body is at the coroner’s pending an examination within 24 hours, although the exact time has not been determined,” Capt. Brian Elias of the Los Angeles County coroner's office said.

Coroner’s officials are expected to make a public statement—the proximate cause of death may be announced before toxicology results are available—when the gross autopsy is finished.

Houston had been treated at least twice for addictions. She used cocaine for several years during her marriage to R&B singer Bobby Brown, she told Oprah Winfrey in 2009.

Houston was in the area for Sunday’s Grammy Awards at the Staples Center. She was slated to perform at the pre-Grammy party of music mogul Clive Davis, who discovered Houston in the 1980s.

Some observers said she was sweating profusely during a rehearsal for a song she was set to sing at Davis' party last night. Others said she was acting a little unusual around the hotel, doing handstands by the pool at one point.

Grammy Awards producers are working to put together a tribute at Sunday’s ceremony in honor of Houston. Big names in the music industry paid homage to the iconic singer and successful actress through official statements and Twitter.

Dolly Parton penned Houston’s 1992 hit I Will Always Love You, which was featured as the lead single in the latter's film debut The Bodyguard.

“I will always be grateful and in awe of the wonderful performance she did on my song and I can truly say from the bottom of my heart, ‘Whitney, I will always love you. You will be missed,’ ” Parton said.

Aretha Franklin, Houston’s godmother, was shocked by the news of the singer’s death.

“It’s so stunning and unbelievable,” the music legend said. “I couldn’t believe what I was reading coming across the TV screen.”

Four-time Grammy winner Rihanna, who is scheduled to perform at Sunday’s Grammys, tweeted, "No words! Just tears Dear Whitney."

Born Whitney Elizabeth Houston in Newark, N.J. on Aug. 9, 1963, she was the third and youngest child of Army serviceman and entertainment executive John Russell Houston, Jr. and gospel singer Cissy Houston.

Cissy Houston talked with her daughter about 30 minutes before she died, and said nothing seemed out of the ordinary. While performing in Mississippi, Houston’s ex-husband Brown blew kisses to the sky and tearfully said, “I love you, Whitney.”

Houston met Brown, of the boy band New Edition, at the 1989 Soul Train awards. The two married in 1992 and a year later their daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown was born. She is Houston’s only child.

In 2000, Houston and Brown were caught with pot at a Hawaii airport but the charges were later dropped. Still, Houston’s increasingly erratic behavior and disheveled appearance gave rise to rumors she was using drugs. Two months later she failed to show up to a scheduled performance for Davis’ introduction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. She was later to perform at the Academy Awards but was fired by musical director Burt Bacharach.

In a 2002 interview by Diane Sawyer, Houston was frank about her drug use.

“First of all, let’s get one thing straight. Crack is cheap,” Houston said. “I make too much money to ever smoke crack. Let’s get that straight. OK?”

The 2005 reality TV series Being Bobby Brown aired for one season and gave America a glimpse into Houston and Brown's troubled relationship. They divorced in 2007.  By the spring of 2011, Houston had entered an addiction treatment center for the second time.

Houston's mother, singer Cissy Houston, and her cousin, vocalist Dionne Warwick, reportedly both talked with Houston Saturday by telephone and nothing seemed unusual. Cissy Houston talked with her daughter about 30 minutes before she died.

Whitney Houston Biography

Singer Whitney Houston of the ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’ and ‘The Greatest Love’ of All fame was originally born Whitney Elizabeth Houston on August 9 1963 in Newark, New Jersey, USA. Music ran in the Houston family so from the time she could talk Whitney started to sing along with her mother who worked as a musician. Here performances never extended beyond family events, entertainment spots and church gatherings but it was during one of these events that a talent scout noticed the young vocal capability and she approached her parents with an invitation to pursue recording. Whitney was ecstatic and she was taken up by Clive J Records on a producing deal.

Singer Whitney Houston is seen with music producer Clive Davis in 1983, shortly after signing a contract with Arista Records.

 At 22 she was on her way into history books as one of entertainment legends.  Whitney Houston went on air in 1985 and was closely followed by Whitney in 1987. Both albums were well received and received a lot of praise and awards. As a black female artist she was admired by many as she represented the epitome of success and strength. Many young fans looked up to Whitney as a role model and upcoming artists, male and female, drew strength from the singer.

She however disappointed fans when rumours of an alleged drug problem began to surface. These were confirmed when she was caught in possession rolls of marijuana and was charged and locked up. Whitney career was on the turmoil as her health was greatly affected by the narcotics and she was on the brink of death. Her battle with the habit let to the sudden drop in a successful career but her songs were still played on radio.

After years she cleaned up and made a comeback with hits like I Didn’t Know My Own Strength and I Look To You in 2009 and 2010 respectively. Both songs were from her 2009 I Look To You album and they went multi-platinum after topping billboard charts in the US and UK. She scooped the BET Honours Award for Entertainer and also won the Best Music Video at the 2010 NAACP Image Awards.

The star also acts and she has had roles in Cinderella, The Preacher’s Wife, Waiting to Exhale, The Bodyguard and How Stella Got Her Groove Back. Whitney owns Brown house Productions, a production company that has produced several films and soundtracks to Waiting To Exhale.

Whitney is a strong supporter of children’s rights and she has raised millions for the cause as well as supporting child victims of HIV/AIDS.

Throughout her career Whitney has worked with big musical names like Stevie Wonder, Bobby Brown, Aretha Franklin, Cece Winans and Mariah Carey. She is ranked among the big league performers of all time and her music is timeless.

She has received a record number of nominations for her works and her entry into the Guinness World book of Records was attributed to this plus her album sales running close to 200 million. In the course of her music and acting career she has scooped a whopping 411 awards including Emmy, Golden Globe, BET, MTV, Billboard and Grammy Awards.

February 13, 2012