Goodnight Sweet Whitney…

I was sitting at my dining room table working on a blog post and joking around with the mister when my phone vibrated, signaling a text alert. I didn’t check it right away but did so mid-laughter and suddenly, I was stunned. It was a text notification from CNN, announcing the death of Whitney Houston. My laughter transformed into silence and shock. The mister was looking at me confused but clearly aware something was wrong. Then I got the words out, “oh my god! Whitney Houston died!”. Now he was the one with a frozen look on his face, we sat there for a few seconds, just confused and shocked.

We spent the next several hours watching CNN’s coverage of the events leading up to Whitney’s death, her incredible career and achievements, and of course, the calls from industry insiders that knew, worked beside and loved Whitney Houston.

There’s no need for me to expound on her public struggles. Everyone knows about them. No matter what occurred in her past, Whitney was seen out in public & photographed several times just days before her passing. This makes the fact that she’s no longer here that much more strange and sad. There’s video and photographs of her smiling, laughing, even singing. My prayers are with her family, especially her mother and child, I know their pain is intense and hard. God bless them.

Given her incredible start in music and how she was beloved as ‘America’s Sweetheart’ at the height of her success, it’s sad the last decade of her life became such a mockery of comedic skits, often difficult-to-watch candid interviews showcasing her personal demons, disheleved photos and erratic behavior. But even with all of that, there’s no denying Whitney had a fantastic career & legendary voice, she has sold 200 million albums worldwide and won two Emmy Awards, six Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, and 22 American Music Awards. Her album “Whitney” was the first female album to ever debut at #1 on the Billboard Charts. Wow, what an unbelievable gift she gave to music.

I remember being in the fourth-grade and every morning before heading off to school, the video for “I Wanna Dance with Somebody”, just happened to be on MTV. Back when music video channels actually played videos and by way of a programming schedule at that. I loved her big crazy hair & frilly crinoline skirt with the leggings underneath. That song was such a hit, and you could feel her youthful energy through every note.

My parents bought her self-titled debut album. I loved that album cover because it was simply styled. It showed Whitney. Nothing crazy or outrageous. No gimmicks, wild makeup or big hair. Just Whitney. Simpler times. She was natural, subtle and stunning.

More pics of Whitney:

senior yearbook photo

Whitney Houston with Arthur Mitchell, Cicely Tyson and her mother, Cissy Houston – Dec. 9, 1988.

An iconic moment in Tampa, Florida at the Super Bowl XXV, when she sang a rousing version of “The Star Spangled Banner” at the start of the Gulf War.

Photographed with her daughter, Bobbi Kristina on Feb, 9th 2012, just two days before her death. The two attended a pre-Grammy bash together.

Whitney’s debut performance on The Merv Griffin Show in 1985.

One sign of a good singer is the ability to sing unrehearsed, mid-interview and belt out the most beautiful studio-quality notes….

And lastly, my favorite Whitney Houston song of all time…

she didn’t live a perfect life, but really, how many of us do? she was a daughter. sister. mother. wife. and blessed us with one amazing gift too. her memory remains forever alive through sound and images alike. her time on this earth was cut far too soon. goodnight sweet Whitney, goodnight.