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"The Voice" - Houston is sometimes referred to as solely "The Voice" because of how powerful she was. Music critic Ann Powers of the LA Times wrote that her voice helped define 20th-century pop, and "[sheltered] the dreams of millions."

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One of the original true divas -

Houston famously, and hilariously, wore the same dress as fellow diva Mariah Carey at the 1998 VMAs.

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Guinness World Records title holder -

Guinness World Records declared Houston as the most-awarded female act of all time, having sold over 170 million albums, singles, and videos worldwide.

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Still the record to break -

To this day, she remains the only artist to have seven consecutive #1 singles on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, surpassing the Beatles.

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It was always going to be music -

Houston began singing in church from a very young age, and became a background vocalist for her mother, Cissy, while in high school. At the age of 19, chairman Clive Davis of Arista Records signed her to the label.

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She was already a successful model -

Houston was already signed to a modeling agency in New York, and she had appeared on the cover of Seventeen magazine and in several ad campaigns.

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A product of Clive Davis - Having guided the careers of Janis Joplin and Bruce Springsteen, Davis reportedly wanted to "create the pop diva, an artist that transcended all genres," and Houston was the perfect canvas.

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Her first Grammy -

In 1986, when she was 22 years old, Houston won her first Grammy, for 'Saving All My Love for You.'

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A trailblazer for black female artists -

Her crossover appeal on pop charts—as well as her prominence on MTV (which was largely white at the time)—influenced several female African-American artists.

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But not without its obstacles -

Her race in the 1980s was a huge topic, as she was sculpted into some "acceptable" version of black for the public, but some black radio stations consequently decided not to play her.

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Editing out her identity - Kenneth Reynolds, who worked for Arista Records, recalled that, "Anything that was too black sounding was sent back." In 1989, she was booed at the Soul Train Awards, and her mother wrote in her autobiography that the crowd called her "Whitey."

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The all-time best Super Bowl anthem -

Houston's triumphant delivery of the national anthem at the Super Bowl in 1991, wearing a white tracksuit, remains by many people's standards the best ever, and it's certainly one of the most famous.

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Her acting debut -

The romantic thriller film 'The Bodyguard' (1992) is her most famous film appearance, and was also her screen acting debut.

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'I Will Always Love You' -

This enduring song, recorded for 'The Bodyguard,' received the Grammy Award for Record of the Year and became the best-selling single by a woman in music history.

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Rumors about her sexuality -

Houston's lack of a publicized love life had people connecting the dots between her and Robyn Crawford, her best friend since the age of 16. Houston's management reportedly feared that the relationship would ruin her image, and soon after she had married fellow musician Bobby Brown.

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Drug use -

Though Houston was seen as a "good girl" in the '80s and early '90s, that had changed by 1999. She was hours late for interviews and photo shoots, her rehearsals went off track, she canceled appearances and concerts, and she was sometimes just a no-show.

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Drug use -

She later admitted to Oprah Winfrey that by the 1996 release of 'The Preacher's Wife' with Denzel Washington, she was already doing drugs every day. "I was losing myself," she said.

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Abuse -

In December 2003, her husband Bobby Brown was charged with battery after allegedly assaulting her. Police reported that Houston had visible injuries on her face.

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'Being Bobby Brown' -

The 2005 reality TV series drew the curtain back on Brown and Houston's personal life. The Hollywood Reporter called it "undoubtedly the most disgusting and execrable series ever to ooze its way onto television." Many view this as Houston's lowest career point.

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Rehab -

Her voice was diminishing, she hadn't been making music, and her image was in the dumps, but she was determined to get out of the dark, starting with cutting off substances and getting a voice coach.

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Divorce -

They pair who had married in 1992 divorced in 2007. They had one daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown, for whom Houston received full custody. Bobbi was the sole beneficiary of her mother's estate.

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The comeback -

Her appearance at the 2009 American Music Awards, appearing in a white gown and singing 'I Didn't Know My Own Strength,' made the crowd leap to their feet. Whitney was back!

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Overeager -

In 2010, without having her voice back at 100%, she embarked on her Nothing but Love tour, promoting her new album 'I Look to You.' She was becoming exhausted, and critics were brutal.

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February 11, 2012 -

On this fateful day, Houston was found dead in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton in California. The coroner's report showed that she had accidentally drowned, with heart disease and cocaine use as contributing factors. She was just 48.

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Posthumous release of 'Sparkle' -

Houston had reportedly fallen in love with the earlier version of the film, and she co-starred in and produced this 2012 version, which was supposed to mark her big-screen comeback. One of her lines in the film is: "Hasn't my life been enough of a cautionary tale?"

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Continuing tragedy -

In 2015, at age 22, Bobbi Kristina Brown was found unconscious in a bathtub and six months later, after being in a coma, she was reported dead. The cause was lobar pneumonia, from "drug intoxication" and water immersion.

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Drugs and abuse -

It also came out that Bobbi's boyfriend, Nick Gordon, had allegedly abused her, and he was ordered to pay US$36 million to her estate after being found liable for her death. He also struggled with drug addiction, and died in January 2020.

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The what-ifs -

Many believe that if Houston hadn't felt she had to hide her love for Robyn Crawford, especially from her homophobic mother, she would never have married Brown, nor would she have died so young. In late 2019, Crawford finally opened up about the romantic nature of their relationship.

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Remembering the love -

Narada Michael Walden, who produced many of her hits like 'How Will I Know' and 'I Wanna Dance with Somebody,' said: "We talk about her addiction, but when you look at Whitney Houston, you have to realize how much work she did, how much love she put out into the universe."

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An icon for the ages -

Whitney Houston gave the world an immense gift, and a lesson not soon forgotten.

Sources: (Vanity Fair) (Irish Times) (Washington Post) (BBC)

See also: Celebrities who have famously battled addiction

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