A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television program. In some cases, not all the tracks from the movie are included in the album; however there are rare cases of songs in the trailers that do not appear in the movie but occur on the soundtrack album. Also, music that is not in the movie can sometimes be incorporated onto a soundtrack album; one notable example is the ''South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut'' soundtrack. Two other well-known examples are Rodgers and Hammerstein's ''Carousel'' and ''The King and I''. In each case, two or more songs which are featured on the album were not included in the finished film.

Often, in advertisements or store listings, soundtrack albums are confused with original cast albums. These are albums made with the original stage cast of a Broadway musical, and are recorded by the cast either in live performance or in a studio, not transferred from a movie soundtrack.

In some cases, recorded dialogue may be incorporated into the soundtrack album. This comes in two kinds: audio clips from the movie itself (used on the albums for ''Pulp Fiction'' and ''Apollo 13'', for example) or radio dramas that involve the characters from the movie involved in other events (example: ''King of Pirates'', from ''FLCL''). The unusual 1956 soundtrack album of the 1939 film ''The Wizard of Oz'' was virtually a condensed version of the film, with enough dialogue on the album for the listener to be able to easily follow the plot, as was the first soundtrack album of the 1968 ''Romeo and Juliet'', and the soundtrack albums of ''The Taming of the Shrew'', ''Cromwell'', and ''Little Big Man''. In the case of ''Patton'', the bulk of the album featured the film's musical score, while the opening and final tracks featured George C. Scott's opening and closing speeches from the movie. The highly unusual soundtrack album of the 1972 mystery film ''Sleuth'' was designed as a sort of teaser, with Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine's voices heard for the first three minutes, after which the dialogue was abruptly cut off and the musical score of the film took over, forcing listeners to actually see the film if they wished to know what the mystery was all about.

In a few rare instances, the ''complete'' soundtrack for a film — dialogue, music, sound effects, etc — has been released. One notable example was a 3-LP set of the 1977 Rankin-Bass film "The Hobbit". Because this particular film was produced for television, it lent itself well to the LP format: built-in commercial insert points were used to end each LP side, thus avoiding any additional editing. Another example was the above-mentioned Zeffirelli ''Romeo and Juliet'' - the movie proved so popular that two years after the film's original release, an album set of the complete soundtrack was released.

See also

Soundtrack

Original cast recordings - for musical theater

Category:Album types

id:Album jalur suara ms:Album runut bunyi nl:Soundtrackalbum sk:Soundtrack

name	The Bodyguard
director	Mick Jackson
producer	Kevin CostnerLawrence KasdanJim Wilson
writer	Lawrence Kasdan
starring	Kevin CostnerWhitney HoustonGary KempBill Cobbs
music	Alan Silvestri
cinematography	Andrew Dunn
editing	Donn CambernRichard A. Harris
studio	Tig ProductionsKasdan Pictures
distributor	Warner Bros.
released	November 25, 1992
runtime	130 minutes
country	United States
language	English
budget	$25 million
gross	$410,945,720 }}

''The Bodyguard'' is a 1992 American romantic-thriller film starring Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston. Costner stars as a former Secret Service Agent turned bodyguard who is hired to protect Houston's character, a music star, from an unknown stalker. Lawrence Kasdan wrote the film in the 1970s, originally as a vehicle for Steve McQueen and Diana Ross. It was directed by Mick Jackson. This film was the debut of R&B; singer Grammy-winner Whitney Houston as an actress.

Plot

Rachel Marron (Whitney Houston) is an Oscar-nominated music superstar who is being stalked and sent death threats. Frank Farmer (Kevin Costner), a former Secret Service agent during Ronald Reagan's presidency-turned professional bodyguard, is hired to protect her.

The film follows Rachel's life through her career and family. Performances include her singing hits such as "I Will Always Love You" and "I Have Nothing". Frank successfully protects her from danger and as a result of his protection, Rachel falls in love with Frank. He initially tries to keep the relationship professional, but the two sleep together. However, recognizing that their relationship may compromise his protection of her, Frank breaks off their affair. Hurt, Rachel begins to push Frank's buttons by violating the routines he put in place, and attempting to sleep with his former Secret Service co-worker, Greg. After finally personally experiencing contact with her stalker via a creepy phone call, Rachel realizes that she must put her trust in Frank ahead of her own desire for success. She finally recognizes the seriousness of the situation and cancels the rest of her tour.

Frank, Rachel, Rachel's driver Henry, son Fletcher, and sister Nikki then flee to an isolated cabin owned by Frank's father, Herb. At the cabin, Nikki attempts to seduce Frank, and becomes angry when her advances are refused. Fletcher is almost killed the next day when a bomb explodes inside the boat he had been riding in moments before. After finding footprints around the cabin, they realize the person after Rachel has followed them. They bunker down in the cabin for the night, with plans to leave in the morning. It is then revealed that Rachel's obsessive stalker and the person trying to kill her are not the same person when an upset and drunken Nikki admits that in a drug-induced jealous fit she had hired a hitman to kill Rachel. After Fletcher was almost killed earlier that day, Nikki realized the hitman she had hired would kill anyone to get to his target, including her nephew that she loves like her own son, but she cannot call it off because she does not know the identity of the killer. When said hit man breaks into the house and Nikki tries to stop him, he shoots and kills her before escaping. At the Oscars after Nikki's murder, the killer tries to assassinate Rachel again with a gun hidden inside of a camera, when she accepts her award for Best Actress. Frank jumps in front of her to save her life, and is shot himself. A Frank manages to kill the hitman who turns out to be his friend and former Secret Service coworker Greg Portman before losing consciousness.

In the end, Tony loses an eye during the melee, having had it gouged out by Portman, but both he and Frank survive their injuries. Frank's duty having been fulfilled by successfully protecting Rachel, they part with a kiss. Frank then moves on to his next assignment, guarding the Reverend Philip Hardy with the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa Rapids.

Cast

Kevin Costner as Frank Farmer

Whitney Houston as Rachel Marron

Gary Kemp as Sy Spector

Bill Cobbs as Bill Devaney

Ralph Waite as Herb Farmer

Debbie Reynolds as herself

Richard Schiff as Skip Thomas

Nathaniel Parker as Clive Healy

Mike Starr as Tony

Rollin Jarrett as Miami Reporter

Background

Lawrence Kasdan's first screenplay, the film was originally proposed in 1976 with Steve McQueen and Diana Ross in the leads, but negotiations fell through as McQueen refused to be billed second to Ross. It was proposed again in 1979, starring Ryan O'Neal and Ross again in the leads. The project fell through due to irreconcilable differences in the relationship of the two stars. Costner stated that he based Frank Farmer on Steve McQueen; even cutting his hair like McQueen (who had died 12 years earlier).

Fellow singer Madonna was considered for the role of Rachel.

According to an interview with the BBC, Kevin Costner confirmed he had discussed a film role for Diana, Princess of Wales shortly before her death in 1997. Kevin Costner had planned to show the movie to Princess Diana due to her interest in seeing it. "I had talked with Princess Di a couple of times," said Costner. "I explained to her that I was going to try to make this movie for her and she was genuinely interested." Costner went on to say "We talked on the phone and she never committed to saying that she would do the film, but I said that when I was done with this movie, that I was going to show it to her and she was genuinely excited to see it."

Reception

Critical reception

''The Bodyguard'' has received mixed reviews. The movie holds a 39% rating on the film aggregator website, Rotten Tomatoes, and received six Golden Raspberry Award nominations, including Worst Picture. Owen Gleibermann, of ''Entertainment Weekly'' negatively reviewed the film, stating, "To say that Houston and Costner fail to strike sparks would be putting it mildly." He added, "[...] the movie gives us these two self-contained celebrity icons working hard to look as if they want each other. It's like watching two statues attempting to mate." However, other critics praised the film, such as Roger Ebert, who gave the film three out of four stars, remarking "The movie does contain a love story, but it's the kind of guarded passion that grows between two people who spend a lot of time keeping their priorities straight."

Two songs from the film, "Run to You" and "I Have Nothing", were nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Song. The film was also nominated for four Grammy Awards, winning three, including Album of the Year for its soundtrack album of the same name.

Commercial reception

In the United States, ''The Bodyguard'' opened on November 25, 1992 in 1,717 theatres. It grossed $16.6 million in its opening weekend, ranking third. The film was in theatres for thirteen non-consecutive weeks, ultimately grossing $121.9 million domestically, and $410.9 million worldwide. It was the seventh highest-grossing film of 1992 in North America, and the second highest-grossing film of 1992, worldwide. At the time, the film became one of the 100 highest grossing films worldwide, though it has since fallen out.

Soundtrack

''The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album'' became the best-selling soundtrack of all time. It has been certified diamond in the US (sales of at least ten million) with shipments of over 17 million copies. Worldwide, the sales are at a staggering 44 million copies. In addition, Houston's "I Will Always Love You" sold 12 million units worldwide.

The soundtrack features five hit singles for Whitney Houston: "I Will Always Love You", "I'm Every Woman", "Queen of the Night", and two Oscar nominated songs "I Have Nothing" and "Run to You".

Parodies

''The Simpsons'' – in the episode "Mayored to the Mob", Homer Simpson receives bodyguard training from an instructor singing "I Will Always Love You'" after graduating his class. Also in the episode, Mark Hamill gets carried by Homer in a fashion which parodies the way Kevin Costner carries Whitney Houston in the movie.

''30 Rock'' – in the episode "Hard Ball", Tracy Jordan is rescued from a mob by his entourage; his character sang "I Will Always Love You" during the scene.

''Bulletproof'' – a scene in the movie parodies ''The Bodyguard'' with Adam Sandler's character singing "I Will Always Love You" and remarking that Damon Wayans's character can always be his bodyguard.

Remake

In 2011, Warner Bros. announced a remake that will update the story to reflect the world of the Internet; in which sites such as Twitter, Google Maps and countless other sites makes access to celebrities easier than ever. The remake will be penned by Jeremiah Friedman and Nick Palmer, with singer Rihanna being tipped to play the role of Rachel Marron, though this is yet to be confirmed.

On 10 March Rihanna ruled out playing the part saying "Absolutely not. I hate it when singers do singing movies all the time, because you can never look at them as anybody else. I want to play a character, my whole life is playing Rihanna, being a singer won't be a stretch for me."

Britney Spears and Alexandra Burke are rumored to be in the running.

References

External links

Category:1992 films Category:1990s thriller films Category:American romantic drama films Category:American thriller films Category:English-language films Category:Films directed by Mick Jackson Category:Interracial romance films Category:Warner Bros. films

ca:El guardaespatlles de:Bodyguard (Film) es:El guardaespaldas fr:Bodyguard it:La guardia del corpo (film 1992) hu:Több mint testőr nl:The Bodyguard ja:ボディガード (映画) no:Bodyguard pl:Bodyguard pt:The Bodyguard ru:Телохранитель (фильм, 1992) sr:Телохранитељ (филм) fi:Bodyguard sv:Bodyguard

The Saint may refer to:

Fiction

Simon Templar, also known as "The Saint", the protagonist of a book series by Leslie Charteris and subsequent adaptations:

* ''The Saint'' (film series), starring Louis Hayward (1938), George Sanders (1939–1941) and Hugh Sinclair (1941–1943)

* ''The Saint'' (radio show) (1944–1951), a radio program starring Vincent Price on NBC Radio

*''The Saint'' (TV series) (1962–1969), a British television series starring Roger Moore

* ''The Saint'' (film) (1997), an American film starring Val Kilmer

**''The Saint'' (soundtrack), a soundtrack album from the 1997 film

** ''The Saint'' (novel), a novelization of the 1997 film, by Burl Barer

"The Saint" (''Law & Order: Criminal Intent''), an episode of ''Law & Order: Criminal Intent''

''Il santo'' (novel), a novel by Antonio Fogazzaro

''The Saint'', an omnibus edition of the Gaunt's Ghosts novels, ''Honour Guard'' through ''Sabbat Martyr'', by Dan Abnett

Music

The Saint (music venue), a club showcasing live, original music in Asbury Park, New Jersey

"The Saint" (song), a song by Orbital from the 1997 film soundtrack of the same title

The Saints (band), an Australian punk band

The Saints (1960s band), an English instrumental band

Newspapers

''The Saint'' (UK newspaper), a student newspaper at the University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, United Kingdom

''The Saint'' (newspaper), a student newspaper at St. Clair College in Ontario, Canada

Other uses

The Saint (club), gay nightclub in New York City that operated from 1980 to 1990

Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua, known locally as "il Santo"

Play Radio (Hampshire), a radio station formerly known at "The Saint"

Ian St. John, Scottish football player nicknamed "The Saint"

WVCR-FM, Siena College radio station

See also

Saint (disambiguation)

de:The Saint fr:Le Saint ro:The Saint sh:The Saint fi:Pyhimys (täsmennyssivu) sv:The Saint

birth name	Whitney Elizabeth Houston
background	solo_singer
birth date	August 09, 1963
birth place
death date	February 11, 2012
death place
instrument	Vocals, piano
genre	Pop, R&B;, soul, dance, gospel
occupation	Singer, actress, model, film producer, record producer, songwriter
years active	1977–2012
label	Arista, RCA
associated acts	Cissy Houston, Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Jermaine Jackson, Mariah Carey, Enrique Iglesias, Bobby Brown
website	}}

Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American recording artist, actress, producer, and model. In 2009, the ''Guinness World Records'' cited her as the most-awarded female act of all time. Her awards include two Emmy Awards, six Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, and 22 American Music Awards, among a total of 415 career awards in her lifetime. Houston was also one of the world's best-selling music artists, having sold over 170 million albums, singles and videos worldwide. Houston began singing with her New Jersey church's junior gospel choir at age 11. 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 is 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 is the second artist behind Elton John and the only female artist to have two number-one ''Billboard'' 200 Album awards (formerly "Top Pop Album") on the ''Billboard'' magazine year-end charts (''Whitney Houston'' and ''The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album''). 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. 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. 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", influenced several African-American female artists to follow in her footsteps.

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. The album makes her the top 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. Three years after the release of her fourth studio album ''My Love Is Your Love'' (1998), she renewed her recording contract with Arista Records. 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. News of her death, the day before the 2012 Grammy Awards, dominated American and international media, especially cable news.

Life and career

1963–1976: Early life

Whitney Houston was born in what was then a middle-income neighborhood in Newark, New Jersey, the third and youngest child of Army serviceman and entertainment executive John Russell Houston, Jr. (September 13, 1920 – February 2, 2003), and gospel singer Cissy Houston (née Emily Drinkard). She was of African American, Native American and Dutch descent. Her mother, along with cousins Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick and godmother Aretha Franklin were all notable figures in the gospel, rhythm and blues, pop, and soul genres. Houston was raised a Baptist, but was also exposed to the Pentecostal church. After the 1967 Newark riots, the family moved to a middle-class area in East Orange, New Jersey, when she was four.

At the age of 11, Houston began to follow in her mother's footsteps and 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. Her first solo performance in the church was "Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah".

When Houston was a teenager, she attended Mount Saint Dominic Academy, a Catholic girls' high school in Caldwell, New Jersey, where she met her best friend Robyn Crawford, whom she described as the "sister she never had". While Houston was still in school, her mother continued to teach her how to sing. In addition to her mother, Franklin, and Warwick, Houston was also exposed to the music of Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight, and Roberta Flack, most of whom would have an impact on her as a singer and performer.

1977–1984: Early career

Houston spent some of her teenage years touring nightclubs where her mother Cissy was performing, and she would occasionally get on stage and perform with her. In 1977, at age 14, she became a backup singer on the Michael Zager Band's single "Life's a Party". Zager subsequently offered to obtain a recording contract for the young singer, but Cissy declined, wanting her daughter to finish school first. Then in 1978, at age 15, Houston sang background vocals on Chaka Khan's hit single "I'm Every Woman", a song she would later turn into a larger hit for herself on her monster-selling ''The Bodyguard'' soundtrack album. She also sang back-up on albums by Lou Rawls and Jermaine Jackson.

In the early 1980s, Houston started working as a fashion model after a photographer saw her at Carnegie Hall singing with her mother. She appeared in ''Seventeen'' and became one of the first women of color to grace the cover of the magazine. She was also featured in layouts in the pages of ''Glamour'', ''Cosmopolitan'', ''Young Miss'', and appeared in a Canada Dry soft drink TV commercial. Her striking looks and girl-next-door charm made her one of the most sought after teen models of that time. While modeling, she continued her burgeoning recording career by working with producers Michael Beinhorn, Bill Laswell and Martin Bisi on an album they were spearheading called ''One Down'', which was credited to the group Material. For that project, Houston contributed the ballad "Memories", a cover of a song by Hugh Hopper of Soft Machine. Robert Christgau of ''The Village Voice'' called her contribution "one of the most gorgeous ballads you've ever heard". She also appeared as a lead vocalist on one track on a Paul Jabara album, entitled ''Paul Jabara and Friends'', released by Columbia Records in 1983.

Houston had previously been offered several recording agencies (Michael Zager in 1980, and Elektra Records in 1981), however her mother declined the offers stating her daughter must first complete high school. In 1983, Gerry Griffith, an A&R; representative from Arista Records, saw her performing with her mother in a New York City nightclub and was impressed. He convinced Arista's head Clive Davis to make time to see Houston perform. Davis too was impressed and offered a worldwide recording contract which Houston signed. Later that year, she made her national televised debut alongside Davis on ''The Merv Griffin Show''.

Houston signed with Arista in 1983, but did not begin work on her album immediately. The label wanted to make sure no other label signed the singer away. Davis wanted to ensure he had the right material and producers for Houston's debut album. Some producers had to pass on the project due to prior commitments. Houston first recorded a duet with Teddy Pendergrass entitled "Hold Me" which appeared on his album, ''Love Language''. The single was released in 1984 and gave Houston her first taste of success, becoming a Top 5 R&B; hit. It would also appear on her debut album in 1985.

1985–1986: Rise to international prominence

With production from Michael Masser, Kashif, Jermaine Jackson, and Narada Michael Walden, Houston's debut album ''Whitney Houston'' was released in February 1985. ''Rolling Stone'' magazine praised Houston, calling her "one of the most exciting new voices in years" while ''The New York Times'' called the album "an impressive, musically conservative showcase for an exceptional vocal talent". Arista Records promoted Houston's album with three different singles from the album in the US, UK and other European countries. In the UK, the dance-funk "Someone for Me", which failed to chart in the country, was the first single while "All at Once" was in such European countries as the Netherlands and Belgium, where the song reached the top 5 on the singles charts, respectively.

In the US, the soulful ballad "You Give Good Love" was chosen as the lead single from Houston's debut to establish her in the black marketplace first. Outside the US, the song failed to get enough attention to become a hit, but in the US, it gave the album its first major hit as it peaked at No. 3 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, and No. 1 on the Hot R&B; chart. As a result, the album began to sell strongly, and Houston continued promotion by touring nightclubs in the US. She also began performing on late-night television talk shows, which were not usually accessible to unestablished black acts. The jazzy ballad "Saving All My Love for You" was released next and it would become Houston's first No. 1 single in both the US and the UK. She was then an opening act for singer Jeffrey Osborne on his nationwide tour. "Thinking About You" was released as the promo single only to R&B-oriented; radio stations, which peaked at number ten on the US R&B; Chart. At the time, MTV had received harsh criticism for not playing enough videos by black, Latino, and other racial minorities while favoring white acts. The third US single, "How Will I Know", peaked at No. 1 and introduced Houston to the MTV audience thanks to its video. Houston's subsequent singles from this, and future albums, would make her the first African-American female artist to receive consistent heavy rotation on MTV.

By 1986, a year after its initial release, ''Whitney Houston'' topped the ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart and stayed there for 14 non-consecutive weeks. The final single, "Greatest Love of All", became Houston's biggest hit at the time after peaking No. 1 and remaining there for three weeks on the Hot 100 chart, which made her debut the first album by a female artist to yield three No. 1 hits. Houston was No. 1 artist of the year and ''Whitney Houston'' was the No. 1 album of the year on the 1986 ''Billboard'' year-end charts, making her the first female artist to earn that distinction. At the time, Houston released the best-selling debut album by a solo artist. Houston then embarked on her world tour, ''Greatest Love Tour''. The album had become an international success, and was certified 13× platinum (diamond) in the United States alone, and has sold a total of 25 million copies worldwide.

At the 1986 Grammy Awards, Houston was nominated for three awards including Album of the Year. She was not eligible for the Best New Artist category due to her previous hit R&B; duet recording with Teddy Pendergrass in 1984. She won her first Grammy award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female for "Saving All My Love for You". At the same award show, she performed that Grammy-winning hit, that performance later winning her an Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program.

Houston won seven American Music Awards in total in 1986 and 1987, and an MTV Video Music Award. The album's popularity would also carry over to the 1987 Grammy Awards when "Greatest Love of All" would receive a Record of the Year nomination. Houston's debut album is listed as one of ''Rolling Stone''s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and on The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. Houston's grand entrance into the music industry is considered one of the 25 musical milestones of the last 25 years, according to ''USA Today''. Following Houston's breakthrough, doors were opened for other African-American female artists such as Janet Jackson and Anita Baker to find notable success in popular music and on MTV.

1987–1991: ''Whitney'', ''I'm Your Baby Tonight'' and "The Star Spangled Banner"

With many expectations, Houston's second album, ''Whitney'', was released in June 1987. The album again featured production from Masser, Kashif and Walden as well as Jellybean Benitez. Many critics complained that the material was too similar to her previous album. ''Rolling Stone'' said, "the narrow channel through which this talent has been directed is frustrating". Still, the album enjoyed commercial success. Houston became the first female artist in music history to debut at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart, and the first artist to enter the albums chart at number one in both the US and UK, while also hitting number one or top ten in dozens of other countries around the world. The album's first single, "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)", was also a massive hit worldwide, peaking at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and topping the singles chart in many countries such as Australia, Germany and the UK. The next three singles, "Didn't We Almost Have It All", "So Emotional", and "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" all peaked at number one on the US Hot 100 chart, which gave her a total of seven consecutive number one hits, breaking the record of six previously shared by The Beatles and The Bee Gees. Houston became the first female artist to generate four number-one singles from one album. ''Whitney'' has been certified 9× Platinum in the US for shipments of over 9 million copies, and has sold a total of 20 million copies worldwide.

At the 30th Grammy Awards in 1988, Houston was nominated for three awards, including Album of the Year, winning her second Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)". Houston also won two American Music Awards in 1988 and 1989, respectively, and a Soul Train Music Award. Following the release of the album, Houston embarked on the ''Moment of Truth World Tour'', which was one of the ten highest grossing concert tours of 1987. The success of the tours during 1986–87 and her two studio albums ranked Houston No. 8 for the highest earning entertainers list according to ''Forbes'' magazine. She was the highest earning African-American woman overall and the third highest entertainer after Bill Cosby and Eddie Murphy.

Houston was a supporter of Nelson Mandela and the anti-apartheid movement. During her modeling days, the singer refused to work with any agencies who did business with the then-apartheid South Africa. On June 11, 1988, during the European leg of her tour, Houston joined other musicians to perform a set at Wembley Stadium in London to celebrate a then-imprisoned Nelson Mandela's 70th birthday. Over 72,000 people attended Wembley Stadium, and over a billion people tuned in worldwide as the rock concert raised over $1 million for charities while bringing awareness to apartheid. Houston then flew back to the US for a concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City in August. The show was a benefit concert that raised a quarter of a million dollars for the United Negro College Fund. In the same year, she recorded a song for NBC's coverage of the 1988 Summer Olympics, "One Moment in Time", which became a Top 5 hit in the US, while reaching number one in the UK and Germany. With her world tour continuing overseas, Houston was still one of the top 20 highest earning entertainers for 1987–88 according to ''Forbes'' magazine.

In 1989, Houston formed The Whitney Houston Foundation For Children, a non-profit organization that has raised funds for the needs of children around the world. The organization cares for homelessness, children with cancer or AIDS, and other issues of self-empowerment. With the success of her first two albums, Houston was undoubtedly an international crossover superstar, the most prominent since Michael Jackson, appealing to all demographics. However, some black critics believed she was "selling out". They felt her singing on record lacked the soul that was present during her live concerts.

At the 1989 Soul Train Music Awards, when Houston's name was called out for a nomination, a few in the audience jeered. Houston defended herself against the criticism, stating, "If you're gonna have a long career, there's a certain way to do it, and I did it that way. I'm not ashamed of it". Houston took a more urban direction with her third studio album, ''I'm Your Baby Tonight'', released in November 1990. She produced and chose producers for this album and as a result, it featured production and collaborations with L.A. Reid and Babyface, Luther Vandross, and Stevie Wonder. The album showed Houston's versatility on a new batch of tough rhythmic grooves, soulful ballads and up-tempo dance tracks. Reviews were mixed. ''Rolling Stone'' felt it was her "best and most integrated album". while ''Entertainment Weekly'', at the time thought Houston's shift towards an urban direction was "superficial".

The album contained several hits: the first two singles, "I'm Your Baby Tonight" and "All the Man That I Need" peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart; "Miracle" peaked at number nine; "My Name Is Not Susan" peaked in the top twenty; "I Belong to You" reached the top ten of the US R&B; chart and garnered Houston a Grammy nomination; and the sixth single, the Stevie Wonder duet "We Didn't Know", reached the R&B; top twenty. The album peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' 200 and went on to be certified 4× platinum in the US while selling twelve million total worldwide.

In 1990, Houston was the spokesperson for a youth leadership conference hosted in Washington, D.C. She had a private audience with President George H. W. Bush in the Oval Office to discuss the associated challenges.

With America entangled in the Persian Gulf War, Houston performed "The Star Spangled Banner" at Super Bowl XXV at Tampa Stadium on January 27, 1991. Due to overwhelming response to her rendition, it was released as a commercial single and video of her performance, and reached the Top 20 on the US Hot 100, making her the only act to turn the national anthem into a pop hit of that magnitude (Jose Feliciano's version reached No. 50 in November 1968). Houston donated all her share of the proceeds to the American Red Cross Gulf Crisis Fund. As a result, the singer was named to the Red Cross Board of Governors.

Her rendition was considered the benchmark for singers and critically acclaimed. ''Rolling Stone'' commented that "her singing stirs such strong patriotism. Unforgettable", and the performance ranked No. 1 on the 25 most memorable music moments in NFL history list. VH1 listed the performance as one of the greatest moments that rocked TV. Following the attacks on 9/11, it was released again by Arista Records, all profits going towards the firefighters and victims of the attacks. This time it peaked at No. 6 in the Hot 100 and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Later in 1991, Houston put together her ''Welcome Home Heroes'' concert with HBO for the soldiers fighting in the Persian Gulf War and their families. The free concert took place at Naval Station Norfolk in Norfolk, Virginia in front of 3,500 servicemen and women. HBO descrambled the concert so that it was free for everyone to watch. Houston's concert gave HBO its highest ratings ever. She then embarked on the ''I'm Your Baby Tonight World Tour''.

1992–1994: Marriage to Bobby Brown and ''The Bodyguard''

Throughout the 1980s, Houston was romantically linked to American football star Randall Cunningham and actor Eddie Murphy, whom she dated. She then met R&B; singer Bobby Brown at the 1989 Soul Train Music Awards. After a three-year courtship, the two were married on July 18, 1992. On March 4, 1993, Houston gave birth to their daughter Bobbi Kristina Houston Brown, her only child, and his fourth. Brown would go on to have several run-ins with the law, including some jail time.

With the commercial success of her albums, movie offers poured in, including offers to work with Robert De Niro, Quincy Jones, and Spike Lee; but Houston felt the time wasn't right. Houston's first film role was in ''The Bodyguard'', released in 1992 and co-starring Kevin Costner. Houston played Rachel Marron, a star who is stalked by a crazed fan and hires a bodyguard to protect her. ''USA Today'' listed it as one of the 25 most memorable movie moments of the last 25 years in 2007. Houston's mainstream appeal allowed people to look at the movie color-blind.

Still, controversy arose as some felt the film's advertising intentionally hid Houston's face to hide the film's interracial relationship. In an interview with ''Rolling Stone'' in 1993, the singer commented that "people know who Whitney Houston is – I'm black. You can't hide that fact." Houston received a Razzie Award nomination for Worst Actress. ''The Washington Post'' said Houston is "doing nothing more than playing Houston, comes out largely unscathed if that is possible in so cockamamie an undertaking", and ''The New York Times'' commented that she lacked passion with her co-star. Despite the film's mixed reviews, it was hugely successful at the box office, grossing more than $121 million in the U.S. and $410 million worldwide, making it one of the top 100 grossing films in film history at its time of release, though it is no longer in the top 100 due to rising ticket prices since the time the film was released.

The film's soundtrack also enjoyed big success. Houston executive produced and contributed six songs for the motion picture's adjoining soundtrack album. ''Rolling Stone'' said it is "nothing more than pleasant, tasteful and urbane". The soundtrack's lead single was "I Will Always Love You", written and originally recorded by Dolly Parton in 1974. Houston's version of the song was acclaimed by many critics, regarding it as her "signature song" or "iconic performance". ''Rolling Stone'' and ''USA Today'' called her rendition "the tour-de-force". The single peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for a then-record-breaking 14 weeks, number one on the R&B; chart for a then-record-breaking 11 weeks, and number one on the Adult Contemporary charts for five weeks, thus becoming the first single to top those three charts simultaneously for five weeks.

The single was certified 4× platinum by the RIAA, making Houston the first female artist with a single to reach that level in the RIAA history and becoming the best-selling single by a female artist in the US. The song also became a global success, hitting number-one in almost all countries, and one of the best-selling singles of all time with 12 million copies sold. The soundtrack topped the ''Billboard'' 200 chart and remained there for 20 non-consecutive weeks, the longest tenure by any album on the chart in the Nielsen SoundScan era, and became one of the fastest selling albums ever. During Christmas week of 1992, the soundtrack sold over a million copies within a week, becoming the first album to achieve that feat under Nielsen SoundScan system. With the follow-up singles "I'm Every Woman", a Chaka Khan cover, and "I Have Nothing" both reaching the top five, Houston became the first female artist to ever have three singles in the Top 11 simultaneously. The album was certified 17× platinum in the US alone, with worldwide sales of 44 million , making ''The Bodyguard'' the second album by a female act on the list of the world's Top 10 best-selling albums, topping Shania Twain's 40 million sold for ''Come On Over''.

Houston won three Grammys for the album in 1994, including two of the Academy's highest honors, Album of the Year and Record of the Year. In addition, she won a record 8 American Music Awards at that year's ceremony including the Award of Merit, 11 Billboard Music Awards, 3 Soul Train Music Awards in 1993–94 including Sammy Davis, Jr. Award as Entertainer of the Year, 5 NAACP Image Awards including Entertainer of the Year, a record 5 World Music Awards, and a BRIT award. Following the success of the project, Houston embarked on another expansive global tour, ''The Bodyguard World Tour'', in 1993–94. Her concerts, movie, and recording grosses made her the third highest earning female entertainer of 1993–94, just behind Oprah Winfrey and Barbra Streisand according to ''Forbes'' magazine. Houston placed in the top five of ''Entertainment Weekly''s annual "Entertainer of the Year" ranking and was labeled by ''Premiere'' magazine as one of the 100 most powerful people in Hollywood.

In October 1994, Houston attended and performed at a state dinner in the White House honoring newly elected South African president Nelson Mandela. At the end of her world tour, Houston performed three concerts in South Africa to honor President Mandela, playing to over 200,000 people. This would make the singer the first major musician to visit the newly unified and apartheid free nation following Mandela's winning election. The concert was broadcast live on HBO with funds of the concerts being donated to various charities in South Africa. The event was considered the nation's "biggest media event since the inauguration of Nelson Mandela".

1995–1997: ''Waiting to Exhale'', ''The Preacher's Wife'' and ''Cinderella''

In 1995, Houston starred alongside Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine, and Lela Rochon in her second film ''Waiting to Exhale'', a motion picture about four African-American women struggling with relationships. Houston played the lead character Savannah Jackson, a TV producer in love with a married man. She chose the role because she saw the film as "a breakthrough for the image of black women because it presents them both as professionals and as caring mothers". After opening at number one and grossing $67 million in the US at the box office and $81 million worldwide, it proved that a movie primarily targeting a black audience can cross over to success, while paving the way for other all-black movies such as ''How Stella Got Her Groove Back'' and the Tyler Perry movies that have become popular in the 2000s. The film is also notable for its portrayal of black women as strong middle class citizens as opposed to stereotypes. The reviews were mainly positive for the ensemble cast. ''The New York Times'' said "Ms. Houston has shed the defensive hauteur that made her portrayal of a pop star in 'The Bodyguard' seem so distant." Houston was nominated for an NAACP Image Award for "Outstanding Actress In A Motion Picture", but lost to her co-star Bassett.

The film's accompanying soundtrack, ''Waiting to Exhale: Original Soundtrack Album'', was produced by Houston and Babyface. Though Babyface originally wanted Houston to record the entire album, she declined. Instead, she "wanted it to be an album of women with vocal distinction", and thus gathered several African-American female artists for the soundtrack, to go along with the film's strong women message. As a result, the album featured a range of contemporary R&B; female recording artists along with Houston, such as Mary J Blige, Aretha Franklin, Toni Braxton, Patti Labelle, and Brandy. Houston's "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" peaked at No. 1, and then spent a record eleven weeks at the No. 2 spot and eight weeks on top of the R&B; Charts. "Count On Me", a duet with CeCe Winans, hit the US Top 10; and Houston's third contribution, "Why Does It Hurt So Bad", made the Top 30. The album debuted at No. 1, and was certified 7× Platinum in the United States, denoting shipments of seven million copies. The soundtrack received strong reviews as ''Entertainment Weekly'' said "the album goes down easy, just as you'd expect from a package framed by Whitney Houston tracks.... the soundtrack waits to exhale, hovering in sensuous suspense" and has since ranked it as one of the 100 Best Movie Soundtracks. Later that year, Houston's children's charity organization was awarded a VH1 Honor for all the charitable work.

In 1996, Houston starred in the holiday comedy ''The Preacher's Wife'', with Denzel Washington. She plays a gospel-singing wife of a pastor (Courtney B. Vance). It was largely an updated remake of the 1948 film "The Bishop's Wife" which starred Loretta Young, David Niven and Cary Grant. Houston earned $10 million for the role, making her one of the highest-paid actresses in Hollywood at the time and the highest earning African American actress in Hollywood. The movie, with its all African-American cast, was a moderate success, earning approximately $50 million at the U.S. box offices. The movie gave Houston her strongest reviews so far. ''The San Francisco Chronicle'' said Houston "is rather angelic herself, displaying a divine talent for being virtuous and flirtatious at the same time" and that she "exudes gentle yet spirited warmth, especially when praising the Lord in her gorgeous singing voice". Houston was again nominated for an NAACP Image Award and won for Outstanding Actress In A Motion Picture.

Houston recorded and co-produced, with Mervyn Warren, the film's accompanying gospel soundtrack. ''The Preacher's Wife: Original Soundtrack Album'' included six gospel songs with Georgia Mass Choir that were recorded at the Great Star Rising Baptist Church in Atlanta. Houston also duetted with gospel legend Shirley Caesar. The album sold six million copies worldwide and scored hit singles with "I Believe in You and Me" and "Step by Step", becoming the largest selling gospel album of all time. The album received mainly positive reviews. Some critics, such as that of ''USA Today'', noted the presence of her emotional depth, while ''The Times'' said "To hear Houston going at full throttle with the 35 piece Georgia Mass Choir struggling to keep up is to realise what her phenomenal voice was made for".

In 1997, Houston's production company changed its name to BrownHouse Productions and was joined by Debra Martin Chase. Their goal was "to show aspects of the lives of African-Americans that have not been brought to the screen before" while improving how African-Americans are portrayed in film and television. Their first project was a made-for-television remake of Rodgers & Hammerstein's ''Cinderella''. In addition to co-producing, Houston starred in the movie as the Fairy Godmother along with Brandy, Jason Alexander, Whoopi Goldberg, and Bernadette Peters. Houston was initially offered the role of Cinderella in 1993, but other projects intervened. The film is notable for its multi-racial cast and nonstereotypical message. An estimated 60 million viewers tuned into the special giving ABC its highest TV ratings in 16 years. The movie received seven Emmy nominations including Outstanding Variety, Musical or Comedy, while winning Outstanding Art Direction in a Variety, Musical or Comedy Special.

Houston and Chase then obtained the rights to the story of Dorothy Dandridge. Houston was to play Dandridge, who was the first African American actress to be nominated for an Oscar. She wanted the story told with dignity and honor. However, Halle Berry also had rights to the project and she got her version going first. Later that year, Houston paid tribute to her idols such as Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, and Dionne Warwick by performing their hits during the three-night HBO Concert ''Classic Whitney'', live from Washington, D.C. The special raised over $300,000 for the Children's Defense Fund. Houston received The Quincy Jones Award for outstanding career achievements in the field of entertainment at the 12th Soul Train Music Awards.

1998–2000: ''My Love Is Your Love'' and ''Whitney: The Greatest Hits''

After spending much of the early and mid 1990s working on motion pictures and their soundtrack albums, Houston's first studio album in eight years, the critically acclaimed ''My Love Is Your Love'', was released in November 1998. Though originally slated to be a greatest hits album with a handful of new songs, recording sessions were so fruitful that a new full-length studio album was released. Recorded and mixed in only six weeks, it featured production from Rodney Jerkins, Wyclef Jean and Missy Elliott. The album debuted at number thirteen, its peak position, on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. It had a funkier and edgier sound than past releases and saw Houston handling urban dance, hip hop, mid-tempo R&B;, reggae, torch songs, and ballads all with great dexterity.

From late 1998 to early 2000, the album spawned several hit singles: "When You Believe" (US No. 15, UK No. 4), a duet with Mariah Carey for 1998's ''The Prince of Egypt'' soundtrack, which also became an international hit as it peaked in the Top 10 in several countries and won an Academy Award for Best Original Song; "Heartbreak Hotel" (US No. 2, UK No. 25) featured Faith Evans and Kelly Price, received a 1999 MTV VMA nomination for Best R&B; Video, and number one on the US R&B; chart for seven weeks; "It's Not Right But It's Okay" (US No. 4, UK No. 3) won Houston her sixth Grammy Award for Best Female R&B; Vocal Performance; "My Love Is Your Love" (US No. 4, UK No. 2) with 3 million copies sold worldwide; and "I Learned from the Best" (US No. 27, UK No. 19). These singles became international hits as well, and all the singles, except "When You Believe", became number one hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot Dance/Club Play chart. The album sold four million copies in America, making it certified 4× platinum, and a total of eleven million copies worldwide.

The album gave Houston some of her strongest reviews ever. ''Rolling Stone'' said Houston was singing "with a bite in her voice" and ''The Village Voice'' called it "Whitney's sharpest and most satisfying so far". In 1999, Houston participated in VH-1's Divas Live '99, alongside Brandy, Mary J. Blige, Tina Turner, and Cher. The same year, Houston hit the road with her 70 date ''My Love Is Your Love World Tour''. The European leg of the tour was Europe's highest grossing arena tour of the year. In November 1999, Houston was named Top-selling R&B; Female Artist of the Century with certified US sales of 51 million copies at the time and ''The Bodyguard Soundtrack'' was named the Top-selling Soundtrack Album of the Century by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). She also won The Artist of the Decade, Female award for extraordinary artistic contributions during the 1990s at the 14th Soul Train Music Awards, and an MTV Europe Music Award for Best R&B;.

In May 2000, ''Whitney: The Greatest Hits'' was released worldwide. The double disc set peaked at number five in the United States, reaching number one in the United Kingdom. In addition, the album reached the Top 10 in many other countries. While ballad songs were left unchanged, the album features house/club remixes of many of Houston's up-tempo hits. Included on the album were four new songs: "Could I Have This Kiss Forever" (a duet with Enrique Iglesias), "Same Script, Different Cast" (a duet with Deborah Cox), "If I Told You That" (a duet with George Michael), and "Fine", and three hits that had never appeared on a Houston album: "One Moment in Time", "The Star Spangled Banner", and "If You Say My Eyes Are Beautiful", a duet with Jermaine Jackson from his 1986 ''Precious Moments'' album. Along with the album, an accompanying VHS and DVD was released featuring the music videos to Houston's greatest hits, as well as several hard-to-find live performances including her 1983 debut on ''The Merv Griffin Show'', and interviews. The greatest hits album was certified 3× platinum in the US, with worldwide sales of 10 million.

2000–2005: ''Just Whitney'', and personal struggles

Though Houston was seen as a "good girl" with a perfect image in the 1980s and early 1990s, by the late 1990s, her behavior changed. She was often hours late for interviews, photo shoots and rehearsals, and canceling concerts and talk-show appearances. With the missed performances and weight loss, rumors about Houston using drugs with her husband circulated. On January 11, 2000, airport security guards discovered marijuana in both Houston's and husband Bobby Brown's luggage at a Hawaii airport, but the two boarded the plane and departed before authorities could arrive. Charges were later dropped against them, but rumors of drug usage between the couple would continue to surface. Two months later, Clive Davis was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Houston had been scheduled to perform at the event, but failed to show up.

Shortly thereafter, Houston was scheduled to perform at the Academy Awards but was fired from the event by musical director and long time friend Burt Bacharach. Her publicist cited throat problems as the reason for the cancellation. In his book ''The Big Show: High Times and Dirty Dealings Backstage at the Academy Awards'', author Steve Pond revealed that "Houston's voice was shaky, she seemed distracted and jittery, and her attitude was casual, almost defiant", and that while Houston was to sing "Over the Rainbow", she would start singing a different song. Houston later admitted to having been fired. Later that year, Houston's long-time executive assistant and friend, Robyn Crawford, resigned from Houston's management company.

In August 2001, Houston signed the biggest record deal in music history with Arista/BMG. She renewed her contract for $100 million to deliver six new albums, on which she would also earn royalties. She later made an appearance on ''Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Special''. Her extremely thin frame further spurred rumors of drug use. Houston's publicist said, "Whitney has been under stress due to family matters, and when she is under stress she doesn't eat." The singer was scheduled for a second performance the following night but canceled. Within weeks, Houston's rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner" would be re-released after the September 11 attacks, with the proceeds donated to the New York Firefighters 9/11 Disaster Relief Fund and the New York Fraternal Order of Police. The song peaked at No. 6 this time on the US Hot 100, topping its previous position.

In 2002, Houston became involved in a legal dispute with John Houston Enterprise. Although the company was started by her father to manage her career, it was actually run by company president Kevin Skinner. Skinner filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit and sued for $100 million (but lost), stating that Houston owed the company previously unpaid compensation for helping to negotiate her $100 million contract with Arista Records and for sorting out legal matters. Houston stated that her 81-year-old father had nothing to do with the lawsuit. Although Skinner tried to claim otherwise, John Houston never appeared in court. Houston's father later died in February 2003. The lawsuit was dismissed on April 5, 2004, and Skinner was awarded nothing.

Also in 2002, Houston did an interview with Diane Sawyer to promote her then-upcoming album. The interview was the highest-rated television interview in history. During the prime-time special, Houston spoke on topics including rumored drug use and marriage. She was asked about the ongoing drug rumors and replied, "First of all, let's get one thing straight. Crack is cheap. I make too much money to ever smoke crack. Let's get that straight. Okay? We don't do crack. We don't do that. Crack is wack." The line was from Keith Haring's mural which was painted in 1986 on the handball court at 128th Street and 2nd Avenue. Houston did, however, admit to using other substances at times, including cocaine.

In December 2002, Houston released her fifth studio album, ''Just Whitney...''. The album included productions from then-husband Bobby Brown, as well as Missy Elliott and Babyface, and marked the first time that Houston did not produce with Clive Davis as Davis had been released by top management at BMG. Upon its release, ''Just Whitney...'' received mixed reviews. The album debuted at number 9 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart and it had the highest first week sales of any album Houston had ever released. The four singles released from the album, didn't fare well on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, but became Hot Dance Club Play hits. ''Just Whitney...'' was certified platinum in the United States, and sold approximately three million worldwide.

On a June 2003 trip to Israel, Houston said of her visit, "I've never felt like this in any other country. I feel at home, I feel wonderful."

In late 2003, Houston released her first Christmas album ''One Wish: The Holiday Album'', with a collection of traditional holiday songs. Houston produced the album with Mervyn Warren and Gordon Chambers. A single titled "One Wish (for Christmas)" reached the Top 20 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and the album was certified gold in the US. Having always been a touring artist, Houston spent most of 2004 touring and performing in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Russia. In September 2004, she gave a surprise performance at the World Music Awards in a tribute to long time friend Clive Davis. After the show, Davis and Houston announced plans to go into studio to work on her new album.

In early 2004, husband Bobby Brown starred in his own reality TV program, ''Being Bobby Brown'' (on the Bravo network), which provided a view into the domestic goings-on in the Brown household. Though it was Brown's vehicle, Houston was a prominent figure throughout the show, receiving as much screen time as Brown. The series aired in 2005 and featured Houston in, what some would say, not her most flattering moments. The ''Hollywood Reporter'' said it was "undoubtedly the most disgusting and execrable series ever to ooze its way onto television." Despite the perceived train-wreck nature of the show, the series gave Bravo its highest ratings in its time slot and continued Houston's successful forays into film and television. The show was not renewed for a second season after Houston stated that she would no longer appear in it, and Brown and Bravo could not come to an agreement for another season.

2006–2012: Return to music, ''I Look to You'', tour and film comeback

After years of controversy and turmoil, Houston separated from Bobby Brown in September 2006, filing for divorce the following month. On February 1, 2007, Houston asked the court to fast track their divorce. The divorce was finalized on April 24, 2007, with Houston granted custody of the couple's daughter. On May 4, Houston sold the suburban Atlanta home featured in ''Being Bobby Brown'' for $1.19 million. A few days later, Brown sued Houston in Orange County, California court in an attempt to change the terms of their custody agreement. Brown also sought child and spousal support from Houston. In the lawsuit, Brown claimed that financial and emotional problems prevented him from properly responding to Houston's divorce petition. Brown lost at his court hearing as the judge dismissed his appeal to overrule the custody terms, leaving Houston with full custody and Brown with no spousal support. In March 2007, Clive Davis of Arista Records announced that Houston would begin recording a new album. In October 2007, Arista released another compilation ''The Ultimate Collection'' outside the United States.

Houston gave her first interview in seven years in September 2009, appearing on Oprah Winfrey's season premiere. The interview was billed as "the most anticipated music interview of the decade". Whitney admitted on the show to using drugs with former husband Bobby Brown, who "laced marijuana with rock cocaine". By 1996, she told Oprah, "[doing drugs] was an everyday thing... I wasn't happy by that point in time. I was losing myself."

Houston released her new album, ''I Look to You'', in August 2009. The album's first two singles are "I Look to You" and "Million Dollar Bill". The album entered the Billboard 200 at No. 1, with Houston's best opening-week sales of 305,000 copies, marking Houston's first number one album since '' The Bodyguard'', and Houston's first studio album to reach number one since 1987's ''Whitney''. Houston also appeared on European television programs to promote the album. She performed the song "I Look to You" on the German television show ''Wetten, dass..?''. Three days later, she performed the worldwide first single from I Look To You, Million Dollar Bill, on the French television show Le Grand Journal. Houston appeared as guest mentor on ''The X Factor'' in the United Kingdom. She performed "Million Dollar Bill" on the following day's results show, completing the song even as a strap in the back of her dress popped open two minutes into the performance. She later commented that she "sang [herself] out of [her] clothes".

The performance was poorly received by the British media, and was variously described as "weird" and "ungracious", "shambolic" and a "flop". Despite this reception, "Million Dollar Bill" jumped to its peak from 14 to number 5 (her first UK top 5 for over a decade), and three weeks after release "I Look to You" went gold. Houston appeared on the Italian version of ''The X Factor'', performing the same song "Million Dollar Bill" to excellent reviews. She was awarded the Gold Certificate for achieving over 50,000 CD sales of "I Look To You" in Italy. In November, Houston performed "I Didn't Know My Own Strength" at the 2009 American Music Awards in Los Angeles, California. Two days later, Houston performed both songs on the Dancing With The Stars season 9 finale. As of December 2009, "I Look to You" has been certified platinum by the RIAA for sales of more than one million copies in the United States. On January 26, 2010, her debut album was re-released in a special edition entitled ''Whitney Houston – The Deluxe Anniversary Edition''.

Houston later embarked on a world tour, entitled the Nothing but Love World Tour. It was her first world tour in over ten years and was announced as a triumphant comeback. However, some poor reviews and rescheduled concerts brought some negative media attention. Houston canceled some concerts due to illness and received widespread negative reviews from fans who were disappointed in the quality of her voice and performance. Some fans reportedly walked out of her concerts.

In January 2010, Houston was nominated for two NAACP Image Awards, one for Best Female Artist and one for Best Music Video. She won the award for Best Music Video for her single "I Look to You". On January 16, she received The BET Honors Award for Entertainer citing her lifetime achievements spanning over 25 years in the industry. The 2010 BET Honors award was held at the Warner Theatre in Washington, D.C. and aired on February 1, 2010. Jennifer Hudson and Kim Burrell performed in honor of her, garnering positive reviews. Houston also received a nomination from the Echo Awards, Germany's version of the Grammys, for Best International Artist. In April 2010, the UK newspaper ''The Mirror'' reported that Houston was thinking about recording her eighth studio album and wanted to collaborate with will.i.am (of The Black Eyed Peas), her first choice for a collaboration.

Houston also performed the song "I Look to You" on the 2011 BET ''Celebration of Gospel'', with gospel–jazz singer Kim Burrell, held at the Staples Center, Los Angeles. The performance aired on January 30, 2011. Early in 2011, she gave an uneven performance in tribute to cousin Dionne Warwick at music mogul Clive Davis' annual pre-Grammy gala. In May 2011, Houston enrolled in a rehabilitation center again, as an out-patient, citing drug and alcohol problems. A representative for Houston said that it was a part of Houston's "longstanding recovery process".

In September 2011, ''The Hollywood Reporter'' announced that Houston was to produce and star (alongside Jordin Sparks and Mike Epps) in the remake of the 1976 film ''Sparkle''. It was also reported that Houston would play Sparks's "not-so encouraging mother". Houston was to have had executive producer credits on top of acting credits according to Debra Martin Chase, producer of ''Sparkle''. She stated that Houston deserved the title considering she had been there from the beginning in 2001 when Houston obtained ''Sparkle'' production rights. R&B; singer Aaliyah's death in a 2001 plane crash derailed production, which would have begun in 2002.

On October 7, 2011, RCA Music Group announced that it was disbanding Arista Records along with J Records and Jive Records. With the shutdown, future material involving Houston was to have been released on the RCA Records brand.

Death

On February 11, 2012, Houston was found dead in a suite at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, in Beverly Hills, California, submerged in the bathtub. The cause of death is not immediately known. Beverly Hills paramedics arrived at approximately 3:30 p.m. and found the singer unresponsive and performed CPR. Houston was pronounced dead at 4:00 p.m. PST. Local police said there were "no obvious signs of criminal intent."

On the Thursday before her death, February 9, 2012, Houston visited singers Brandy and Monica, together with Clive Davis, at their rehearsals for Davis' pre-Grammy Awards party. That same day, she made her last public performance, when she joined Kelly Price on stage at the party and sang "Jesus Loves Me".

Reaction

The Clive Davis party that Houston was expected to attend, and that featured many of the biggest names in music and movies, went on as scheduled although it was quickly turned into a tribute to Houston. Davis spoke about Houston's death at the evening's start: "By now you have all learned of the unspeakably tragic news of our beloved Whitney's passing. I don't have to mask my emotion in front of a room full of so many dear friends. I am personally devastated by the loss of someone who has meant so much to me for so many years. Whitney was so full of life. She was so looking forward to tonight even though she wasn't scheduled to perform. Whitney was a beautiful person and a talent beyond compare. She graced this stage with her regal presence and gave so many memorable performances here over the years. Simply put, Whitney would have wanted the music to go on and her family asked that we carry on."

Tony Bennett, who had a drug addiction problem in the 1970s, spoke of Houston's death before performing at Davis' party. He said, "First, it was Michael Jackson, then Amy Winehouse, now, the magnificent Whitney Houston", tying it into his public stance in favor of legalizing drugs. Bennett sang "How Do You Keep the Music Playing?" and said of Houston, "When I first heard her, I called Clive Davis and said, 'You finally found the greatest singer I've ever heard in my life.'"

Several other celebrities released statements responding to Houston's death. Dolly Parton, whose song "I Will Always Love You" was covered by Houston, said, "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'." Houston's godmother Aretha Franklin said, "It's so stunning and unbelievable. I couldn't believe what I was reading coming across the TV screen." Mariah Carey said, "Heartbroken and in tears over the shocking death of my friend ... She will never be forgotten as one of the greatest voices to ever grace the earth."

Moments after news of her death emerged, CNN, MSNBC and Fox News all broke from their regularly scheduled programming to dedicate time to non-stop coverage of Houston's death. All three featured live interviews with people who knew Houston including those that have worked with her, interviewed her along with some of her peers in the music industry. ''Saturday Night Live'' displayed a still photo in silent reverence of a smiling Houston, alongside Molly Shannon, from her 1996 appearance. MTV and VH-1 interrupted their regularly scheduled programming on Sunday February 12 to air many of Houston's classic videos with MTV often airing news segments in between and featuring various reactions from fans and celebrities.

Houston's former husband, Bobby Brown, was reported to be "in and out of crying fits" since receiving the news. He did not cancel a scheduled performance and within hours of his ex-wife's sudden death, an audience in Mississippi observed as Brown blew kisses skyward, tearfully saying: "I love you, Whitney".

Ken Ehrlich, executive producer of the 54th Grammy Awards announced that Jennifer Hudson would perform a tribute to Houston at the February 12, 2012, awards. He said "event organizers believed Hudson — an Academy Award-winning actress and Grammy Award-winning artist — could perform a respectful musical tribute to Houston". Ehrlich went on to say: "It's too fresh in everyone's memory to do more at this time, but we would be remiss if we didn't recognize Whitney's remarkable contribution to music fans in general, and in particular her close ties with the Grammy telecast and her Grammy wins and nominations over the years". At the start of the awards ceremony, footage of Houston performing was shown following a prayer read by host, LL Cool J. Later in the program following a montage of photos of musicians who died in 2011, Hudson paid tribute to Houston and the other artists by performing "I Will Always Love You".

Artistry and legacy

Voice

Houston was a mezzo-soprano, and was commonly referred to as "The Voice" in reference to her exceptional vocal talent. Her vocal range extended from G below middle C (G₃) to high B-flat (B₅); she could belt out to treble F (F₅). She was third in MTV's list of 22 Greatest Voices, and sixth on ''Online Magazine COVE''s list of the 100 Best Pop Vocalists with a score of 48.5/50. In 2008, ''Rolling Stone'' listed Houston as the thirty-fourth of the 100 greatest singers of all time, stating, "Her voice is a mammoth, coruscating cry: Few vocalists could get away with opening a song with 45 unaccompanied seconds of singing, but Houston's powerhouse version of Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You" is a tour de force."

Mariah Carey stated, "Whitney has a really rich, strong mid-belt that very few people have. She sounds really good, really strong." While in her review of ''I Look to You'', music critic Ann Powers of the ''Los Angeles Times'' writes, "[Houston's voice] stands like monuments upon the landscape of 20th century pop, defining the architecture of their times, sheltering the dreams of millions and inspiring the climbing careers of countless imitators", adding "When she was at her best, nothing could match her huge, clean, cool mezzo-soprano".

Houston's vocal stylings have had a significant impact on the music industry. She has been called the "Queen of Pop" for her influence during the 1990s, commercially rivaling Mariah Carey and Celine Dion. Stephen Holden from ''The New York Times'', in his review of Houston's Radio City Music Hall concert on July 20, 1993, praised her attitude as a singer highly, writing "Whitney Houston is one of the few contemporary pop stars of whom it might be said: the voice suffices. While almost every performer whose albums sell in the millions calls upon an entertainer's bag of tricks, from telling jokes to dancing to circus pyrotechnics, Ms. Houston would rather just stand there and sing." He added the comments on her singing style: "Her [Houston's] stylistic trademarks – shivery melismas that ripple up in the middle of a song, twirling embellishments at the ends of phrases that suggest an almost breathless exhilaration – infuse her interpretations with flashes of musical and emotional lightning."

Elysa Gardner of the ''Los Angeles Times'' in her review for ''The Preacher's Wife Soundtrack'' praised Houston's vocal ability highly, commenting, "She is first and foremost a pop diva – at that, the best one we have. No other female pop star – not Mariah Carey, not Celine Dion, not Barbra Streisand – quite rivals Houston in her exquisite vocal fluidity and purity of tone, and her ability to infuse a lyric with mesmerizing melodrama."

Influence

During the 1980s, MTV was coming into its own and received harsh criticism for not playing enough videos by black artists. With Michael Jackson breaking down the color barrier for black male artists, Houston did the same for black female artists. She became one of the few black female artists to receive heavy rotation on the network following the success of the "How Will I Know" video. Following Houston's breakthrough, other African-American female artists, such as Janet Jackson and Anita Baker, were successful in popular music. Baker commented that "Because of what Whitney and Sade did, there was an opening for me... For radio stations, black women singers aren't taboo anymore."

Allmusic additionally noted her contribution to success of black artists on the pop scene, commenting, "Houston was able to handle big adult contemporary ballads, effervescent, stylish dance-pop, and slick urban contemporary soul with equal dexterity; the result was an across-the-board appeal that was matched by scant few artists of her era, and helped her become one of the first black artists to find success on MTV in Michael Jackson's wake." ''The New York Times'' stated that "Houston was a major catalyst for a movement within black music that recognized the continuity of soul, pop, jazz and gospel vocal traditions". Richard Corliss of ''Time'' magazine commented about her first success breaking various barriers:

Of her first album's ten cuts, six were ballads. This chanteuse [Houston] had to fight for air play with hard rockers. The young lady had to stand uncowed in the locker room of macho rock. The soul strutter had to seduce a music audience that anointed few black artists with superstardom. [...] She was a phenomenon waiting to happen, a canny tapping of the listener's yen for a return to the musical middle. And because every new star creates her own genre, her success has helped other blacks, other women, other smooth singers find an avid reception in the pop marketplace.

According to ''The New York Times'', Houston "revitalized the tradition of strong gospel-oriented pop-soul singing". Ann Powers of the ''Los Angeles Times'' referred to the singer as a "national treasure". She was considered by many to be a "singer's singer", who had an influence on countless other vocalists, both female and male. Similarly, Steve Huey from Allmusic wrote that the shadow of Houston's prodigious technique still looms large over nearly every pop diva and smooth urban soul singer – male or female – in her wake, and spawned a legion of imitators. ''Rolling Stone'', on her biography, stated that Houston "redefined the image of a female soul icon and inspired singers ranging from Mariah Carey to Beyoncé". ''Essence'' ranked Houston the fifth on their list of 50 Most Influential R&B; Stars of all time, calling her "the diva to end all divas".

A number of artists have acknowledged Houston as an influence, including Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, Toni Braxton, Christina Aguilera, Jessica Simpson, Nelly Furtado, Kelly Clarkson, Britney Spears, Ciara, P!nk, Robin Thicke, Jennifer Hudson, Stacie Orrico, Amerie, Destiny's Child, Mariah Carey, who was often compared to Houston, said, "Houston has been a big influence on me." She later told ''USA Today'' that "none of us would sound the same if Aretha Franklin hadn't ever put out a record, or Whitney Houston hadn't."

Mary J. Blige said that Houston inviting her onstage during VH1's ''Divas Live'' show in 1999 "opened doors for [her] all over the world". Brandy stated, "The first Whitney Houston CD was genius. That CD introduced the world to her angelic yet powerful voice. Without Whitney, half of this generation of singers wouldn't be singing." Kelly Rowland, in an ''Ebony'' feature article celebrating black music in June 2006, recalled that "[I] wanted to be a singer after I saw Whitney Houston on TV singing 'Greatest Love of All'. I wanted to sing like Whitney Houston in that red dress." She added that "And I have never, ever forgotten that song [Greatest Love of All]. I learned it backward, forward, sideways. The video still brings chills to me. When you wish and pray for something as a kid, you never know what blessings God will give you."

Beyoncé told the ''Globe and Mail'' that Houston "inspired [her] to get up there and do what [she] did". Alicia Keys, in an interview about her album ''The Element of Freedom'' with ''Billboard'' magazine, also said "Whitney is an artist who inspired me from [the time I was] a little girl". Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson cites Houston as her biggest musical influence. She told ''Newsday'' that she learned from Houston the "difference between being able to sing and knowing how to sing". Leona Lewis, who has been called the New Whitney Houston, also cites her as an influence. Lewis stated that she idolized her as a little girl. American recording artist Lady Gaga said that Houston had been one of her "vocal idols" for years. In an interview with IBN Live, Gaga revealed that she used to listen to Houston's version of "The Star Spangled Banner" over and over again. At the 2011 Grammys, Gaga gave a shout-out to Houston, and said that she wrote the song "Born This Way" thinking about Houston's vocals.

Awards and achievements

Houston was the most awarded female artist of all time, according to Guinness World Records, with two Emmy Awards, six Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among a total of 415 career awards as of 2010. She held the all-time record for the most American Music Awards of any female solo artist and shared the record with Michael Jackson for the most AMAs ever won in a single year with eight wins in 1994. Houston won a record 11 Billboard Music Awards at its fourth ceremony in 1993. She also had the record for the most WMAs won in a single year, winning five awards at the 6th World Music Awards in 1994.

In May 2003, Houston placed at number three on VH1's list of "50 Greatest Women of the Video Era", behind Madonna and Janet Jackson. She was also ranked at number 116 on their list of the "200 Greatest Pop Culture Icons of All Time". In 2008, ''Billboard'' magazine released a list of the Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists to celebrate the US singles chart's 50th anniversary, ranking Houston at number nine. Similarly, she was ranked as one of the "Top 100 Greatest Artists of All Time" by VH1 in September 2010. In November 2010, ''Billboard'' released its "Top 50 R&B;/Hip-Hop Artists of the Past 25 Years" list and ranked Houston at number three whom not only went on to earn eight number one singles on the R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs chart, but also landed five number ones on R&B;/Hip-Hop Albums.

Houston's debut album is listed as one of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine and is on Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Definitive 200 list. In 2004, ''Billboard'' picked the success of her first release on the charts as one of 110 Musical Milestones in its history. Houston's entrance into the music industry is considered one of the 25 musical milestones of the last 25 years, according to ''USA Today'' in 2007. It stated that she paved the way for Mariah Carey's chart-topping vocal gymnastics. In 1997, the Franklin School in East Orange, New Jersey was renamed to The Whitney E. Houston Academy School of Creative and Performing Arts. In 2001, Houston was the first artist ever to be given a BET Lifetime Achievement Award.

Houston was also one of the world's best-selling music artists, having sold over 200 million albums and singles worldwide. Although she released relatively few albums, she was ranked as the fourth best-selling female artist in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America, with 55 million certified albums sold in the US alone.

She held an Honorary Doctorate in Humanities from Grambling State University, Louisiana.

Discography

''Whitney Houston'' (1985)

''Whitney'' (1987)

''I'm Your Baby Tonight'' (1990)

''My Love Is Your Love'' (1998)

''Just Whitney'' (2002)

''One Wish: The Holiday Album'' (2003)

''I Look to You'' (2009)

Filmography

+ Film roles
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes and awards
1992	''The Bodyguard''	Rachel Marron	Nominated – 1993 MTV Movie Award for Best Female PerformanceNominated – 1993 MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough PerformanceNominated – 1993 MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo with co-star Kevin CostnerNominated – 1992 Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress
1995	''Waiting to Exhale''	Savannah Jackson	Nominated – 1996 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture
1996	''The Preacher's Wife''	Julia Biggs
1997		Fairy Godmother
2012		Emma	Posthumous release

+ Television roles	! Year	! Title	! Network	! Role	Notes
1984	''Gimme a Break!''	NBC	Rita	"Katie's College" (Season 3, Episode 20)
1985	''Silver Spoons''	NBC	Herself	"Head Over Heels" (Season 4, Episode 1, Air date: September 15, 1985)She performed the edited version of "Saving All My Love for You", changing some of the words.
2002	''Boston Public''	Fox	Herself	She performed "Try It On My Own" from the 2002 studio album ''Just Whitney''.

+ Commercials
! Year	! Company	! Promoting	! Country	Notes
	Dr Pepper/Seven Up	Canada Dry(soft drink beverage)	United States		* Houston appeared in this commercial before debut as a professional singer and sang the praises of sugar free Canada Dry Ginger Ale.
	Coca-Cola	Diet Coke(soft drink beverage)	United States		* Houston sang the Diet Coke theme song, "Just for the taste of it".
	Coca-Cola	Diet Coke(soft drink beverage)	United States		* Houston sang the other version of the Diet Coke advertising slogan at the time, "Just for the taste of it".	* Outside the United States, the second version of advertising was released, in which "Greatest Love of All" was used as background music.	1989 MTV Video Music Awards#Video of the Year>Video of the Year winning "This Note's for You" by Neil Young, parodied parts of this advertising to criticize pop/rock stars who make commercial endorsements, most notably Michael Jackson for Pepsi and Houston for Diet Coke, using look-alikes for them.
		Electronics(the stereo, TV)	Japan		Keith Thomas (producer)>Keith Thomas. It was released as a CD single in Japan and included in Japanese edition of ''I'm Your Baby Tonight''.
	AT&T;	Telephone services	United States		* Houston sang its theme song, "True Voice".

+ Production
! Year	! Title	! Director	Notes and awards
1997		Robert Iscove	Executive producerNominated – 50th Primetime Emmy Awards
2001		[[Garry Marshall	ProducerWon – 2002 Young Artist Award for Best Family Feature Film – ComedyNominated – 2002 Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Family Film (Live Action) Nominated – 2002 Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Family FilmNominated – 2002 Teen Choice Award for Film – Choice Movie, Comedy
2003		Oz Scott	Producer
2004	''The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement''	Garry Marshall	Producer
2006		Kenny Ortega	Co-executive producer

Tours

;World tours

''The Greatest Love World Tour'' (1986)

''Moment of Truth World Tour'' (1987–88)

''I'm Your Baby Tonight World Tour'' (1991)

''The Bodyguard World Tour'' (1993–94)

''My Love Is Your Love World Tour'' (1999)

''Nothing But Love World Tour'' (2010)

;Regional tours

''Feels So Right Tour'' (1990)

''Pacific Rim Tour'' (1997)

''The European Tour'' (1998)

''Soul Divas Tour'' (2004)

;Televised concerts

''Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute'' (1988)

''Welcome Home Heroes with Whitney Houston'' (1991)

''The Concert for a New South Africa'' (1994)

''Classic Whitney Live from Washington, D.C.'' (1997)

See also

American Music Award nominations for Whitney Houston

Grammy nominations for Whitney Houston

Honorific nicknames in popular music

List of artists who reached number one in the United States

List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. Dance chart

List of best-selling music artists

Melisma

References

Further reading

External links

Category:1963 births Category:2012 deaths Category:Actors from New Jersey Category:African American female singers Category:African American film actors Category:African American record producers Category:African-American film producers Category:American dance musicians Category:American female models Category:American gospel singers Category:American mezzo-sopranos Category:American pop singers Category:American rhythm and blues singers Category:Arista Records artists Category:Articles with inconsistent citation formats Category:Baptists from the United States Category:Death in California Category:Emmy Award winners Category:English-language singers Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Musicians from New Jersey Category:Participants in American reality television series Category:People from East Orange, New Jersey Category:People from Newark, New Jersey Category:People self-identifying as alcoholics

af:Whitney Houston ar:ويتني هيوستن an:Whitney Houston az:Uitni Hyuston zh-min-nan:Whitney Houston map-bms:Whitney Houston be:Уітні Х'юстан be-x-old:Ўітні Г’юстан bg:Уитни Хюстън bs:Whitney Houston ca:Whitney Houston cs:Whitney Houston cbk-zam:Whitney Houston cy:Whitney Houston da:Whitney Houston de:Whitney Houston et:Whitney Houston el:Γουίτνεϊ Χιούστον eml:Whitney Houston es:Whitney Houston eo:Whitney Houston eu:Whitney Houston fa:ویتنی هیوستون fo:Whitney Houston fr:Whitney Houston fy:Whitney Houston ga:Whitney Houston ko:휘트니 휴스턴 hy:Ուիթնի Հյուսթոն hi:व्हिटनी हॉस्टन hr:Whitney Houston io:Whitney Houston id:Whitney Houston is:Whitney Houston it:Whitney Houston he:ויטני יוסטון jv:Whitney Houston ka:უიტნი ჰიუსტონი kk:Уитни Хьюстон sw:Whitney Houston kv:Хьюстон, Уитни la:Whitney Houston lv:Vitnija Hjūstone lb:Whitney Houston lt:Whitney Houston lmo:Whitney Houston hu:Whitney Houston ml:വിറ്റ്നി ഹ്യൂസ്റ്റൺ mr:व्हिटनी ह्युस्टन ms:Whitney Houston my:ဝှစ်တနီ ဟယူစတန် nl:Whitney Houston ja:ホイットニー・ヒューストン no:Whitney Houston nn:Whitney Houston uz:Whitney Houston ps:ويټني هيوسټن pl:Whitney Houston pt:Whitney Houston ro:Whitney Houston ru:Хьюстон, Уитни sah:Уитни Хьюстон sq:Whitney Houston scn:Whitney Houston simple:Whitney Houston sk:Whitney Houstonová sl:Whitney Houston sr:Витни Хјустон sh:Whitney Houston su:Whitney Houston fi:Whitney Houston sv:Whitney Houston tl:Whitney Houston ta:விட்னி ஊசுட்டன் th:วิตนีย์ ฮิวสตัน tr:Whitney Houston uk:Вітні Х'юстон vi:Whitney Houston war:Whitney Houston yo:Whitney Houston zh:惠特妮·休斯顿

name	David Foster
background	non_performing_personnel
birth name	David Walter Foster
birth date	November 01, 1949
birth place	Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
instrument	Piano, keyboards, French horn, synthesizer
genre	Pop, R&B;, classical, gospel
occupation	Record producer, musician, composer, songwriter, arranger
years active	1971–present
label	Reprise/143, Atlantic
associated acts	Skylark, Attitudes, Airplay, Ronnie Hawkins & The Hawks
website	davidfoster.com }}

David Walter Foster, OC, OBC (born November 1, 1949), is a Canadian musician, record producer, composer, singer, songwriter, and arranger, noted for discovering singers such as Michael Bublé, Josh Groban, and Charice Pempengco; and for producing some of the most successful artists in the world.

Career

Throughout his career, he has produced recordings for a wide range of musical artists, including Bryan Adams, Tamia, Christina Aguilera, The Bee Gees, Andrea Bocelli, Boz Scaggs, Mariah Carey, Chicago, Destiny's Child, Neil Diamond, Céline Dion, Earth Wind and Fire, Gloria Estefan, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson, Chaka Khan, Beyonce Knowles, Kenny Loggins, Madonna, Olivia Newton-John, Nsync, Charice Pempengco, Prince, Kenny Rogers, Barbra Streisand, Donna Summer, Shania Twain, and Jackie Evancho.

Foster was a keyboardist for the pop group Skylark discovered by Eirik Wangberg. The band's song “Wildflower” was a top ten hit in 1973.

Together with Jay Graydon he formed the band Airplay, whose album of the same name is often labeled the most important within the Westcoast AOR genre.

He produced debut albums for The Corrs, Michael Bublé, Renee Olstead and Josh Groban, which were released under his own record label, 143 Records, and distributed through Warner Music. Foster helped launch Kevin Sharp's career after the two met through the Make-A-Wish Foundation and he produced David Hayes singing a song by composed by Ed Scheid and Laramy Smith title "Friend".

In 1985, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine named Foster the "master of ... bombastic pop kitsch." That year, Foster composed the score for the film ''St. Elmo's Fire'', including "Love Theme from St. Elmo's Fire" which hit No. 15 in US pop charts (with a remake of a song titled "For just a moment" with vocals by Amy Holland and Donny Gerrard). Another song from the film, "St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)", recorded by John Parr hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on September 7, 1985. The following years, Foster continued turning out occasional film scores, including the Michael J. Fox comedy ''The Secret of My Success'' and the Jodie Foster-Mark Harmon drama ''Stealing Home'', both of which spawned soundtrack albums with prominent Foster-penned contributions. He collaborated with then-wife Linda Thompson on the song "I Have Nothing", sung by Whitney Houston in the 1992 film ''The Bodyguard''. The couple were nominated for a Grammy Award and an Academy Award for Best Song for the song.

He produced Japanese singer Seiko Matsuda's 1988 album "Citron", also arranging and co-writing all the songs on the album, including the number one single "Marrakech".

In 1995 Foster signed a deal with Warner Brothers that enabled him to set up his own boutique label, 143 Records, as a joint venture with Warner. Foster gave the responsibility for running the label to then manager Brian Avnet. One of the label's first signing was little known Irish folk-rock band The Corrs, for whom he produced their debut album. By 1997 Foster had come to the realisation that, in the American market at least, "logo labels" like 143 were in a "bad spot" and as a result Foster sold the label back to Warner and became senior vice-president at the corporation.

Foster, along with Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, composed "The Power of the Dream" as the official song of the 1996 Summer Olympics, with then-wife Thompson providing the lyrics (sung by Céline Dion). He also composed "Winter Games", the theme song for 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Alberta. "Winter Games" is the soundtrack for a fountain show at the Bellagio resort in Las Vegas as well as a fountain show at Sea World Orlando. Also in 2001, he collaborated with Lara Fabian and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra to record the Canadian national anthem, "O Canada", for an English version, a French version, and a bilingual (French/English) version, for a promotion of the Government of Canada. In 2003, Foster won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Music and Lyrics for ''The Concert for World Children's Day''. His song "I Will Be There With You" (sung with Katharine McPhee) is being used by Japan Airlines to promote the introduction of new aircraft to its US flights.

During the 1990s he often performed acts with San Diego vocalist Warren Wiebe, whom he had discovered in the restroom of a hotel bar in 1987. In 1994 he had Wiebe put together a band called Millennium featuring Nita Whitaker and a few session vocalists, but the deal with Foster's record company led to the group's demise. Wiebe was Foster's "mouth" on many of his videos but committed suicide before he could release a solo album.

In 2005, record producer David Foster, his daughter Amy Foster-Gillies and Knowles wrote "Stand Up For Love" as the anthem to the World Children's Day, an annual worldwide event to raise awareness and funds for children causes. Over the past three years, more than $50 million has been raised to benefit Ronald McDonald House Charities and other children's organizations. Destiny's Child lent their voices and support as global ambassadors for the 2005 program.

In 2009 it was revealed that Foster had worked with songwriter Diane Warren to produce records for Whitney Houston's upcoming album. It was then announced that her comeback single would be the Foster-produced "I Didn't Know My Own Strength".

He recently collaborated with American Idol finalist Michael Johns on the re-write of his popular 1980s hit "St Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)."

In July 2011, it was announced that Foster would take the helm of Verve Records under Universal Music and shift the focus of the label from jazz to adult contemporary pop.

Television appearances

In early 1992, the national television station RCTI, David Foster came to Indonesia for the TV show ''David Foster's Twilight Orchestra''.

In early 2001, Foster was in ''Popstars'', a reality series that aired on WB. The series aimed at coming up with the next girl group and eventually became Eden's Crush (featuring Nicole Scherzinger). David Foster and Linda Thompson wrote and produced several songs on their album.

Foster's home life was featured in a Fox staged reality TV show called ''The Princes of Malibu'', in which he attempts to force his two spoiled stepsons, Brandon and Brody Jenner (the children of Thompson and Olympian Bruce Jenner), to straighten their lives up and earn their own way.

In late April 2005, Foster appeared as a special guest on both ''American Idol'' (as a mentor) and ''Nashville Star'' (as a judge) two weeks apart. He was also a judge on ''Celebrity Duets'', a FOX TV show, and appeared on ''Star Tomorrow'', where auditions were held in Los Angeles and New York for undiscovered talent. It aired only one [July 31, 2006] episode on NBC.

In July 2006, Foster made a brief appearance on ''The View'' as Star Jones's vocal coach. In August 2006, he was the musical director for JCPenney Jam: The Concert For American Kids], which aired on CBS and was later released in CD/DVD format. In November 2007, Foster appeared in Oprah's annual "Favorite Things" episode, performing with Josh Groban.

In September 2008, singer Charice joined Foster on ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'' with Celine Dion via satellite; and later on October 31, he and Andrea Bocelli appeared on ''Oprah'' again together, where he stated that Bocelli was his "favorite singer on the planet".

In December 2008, Foster was featured in a PBS special titled ''Hitman David Foster & Friends'', a concert featuring live performances by Foster and numerous other performers. Foster was also featured in ''Under the Desert Sky'' in 2006, ''Vivere Live in Tuscany'' in 2007, and the ''My Christmas Special'', in 2009, Andrea Bocelli's three latest PBS Specials. Bocelli also performed during Foster's Hitman special.

In late 2009, he also appeared on a number of TV shows to promote Bocelli's ''My Christmas'' album, which he produced, including ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'', ''Dr. Phil'', ''The Early Show'' and ''Fox & Friends''. He also made a number of appearances in 2010 with Filipino singer Charice, to promote her album.

Personal life

Foster has been married three times, has five biological daughters, an ex-stepdaughter, and two ex-stepsons. His first marriage was to singer/writer B.J. Cook. She already had a daughter, Tamre Winger, whom he raised. Together, B.J. Cook and Foster had one daughter, Amy Foster (b. July 29, 1973), a songwriter who has collaborated with classic artists such as Andrea Bocelli, Michael Bublé, and Josh Groban.

His second wife was model Rebecca Dyer. They had three daughters: Sara Foster (b. August 24, 1981), Erin Foster (b. August 24, 1983), and Jordan Foster (b. September 1986). As of May 2008, Sara was engaged to tennis player Tommy Haas, and on November 14, 2010, Haas and Foster welcomed a baby girl in Santa Monica, CA. Foster also has a daughter, Allison Jones (b. April 6, 1970), from a previous relationship.

Foster married third wife Linda Thompson on June 27, 1991. The two became a songwriting team, collaborating on several songs including "I Have Nothing," performed by Whitney Houston in The Bodyguard, and "Grown-Up Christmas List." Thompson filed for divorce Monday July 11, 2005, the day after her short-lived reality series, ''The Princes of Malibu'' premiered. Thompson is the mother of Brody Jenner and Brandon Jenner from her previous marriage to former Olympian Bruce Jenner.

Foster's sister, producer Jaymes Foster, is the mother of Clay Aiken's son Parker Foster Aiken.

David's cousin, Billy Foster, died in a race car accident in 1967.

In 1992, David Foster was driving on the Pacific Coast Highway when his car struck actor Ben Vereen, who had been on the road because he had crashed his car and was in a daze. Despite being thrown 90 feet, Vereen survived. Vereen also went on record to say that it probably saved his life: he had a serious drinking problem caused by the death of his daughter.

Discography

In addition to the numerous albums he has produced, the following are Foster's own solo or band works:

1972: ''Skylark'' (self-titled)

1974: ''2'' Skylark

1976: ''Attitudes'' (self-titled)

1977: ''Good News'' Attitudes

1980: ''Airplay'' (self-titled)

1983: ''The Best of Me''

1986: ''David Foster'' (self-titled)

1988: ''The Symphony Sessions''

1989: ''Time Passing''

1990: ''River of Love''

1991: ''Rechordings''

1992: ''A Touch Of David Foster''

1993: ''The Christmas Album''

1994: ''Love Lights The World''

2000: ''The Best Of Me: A Collection of David Foster’s Greatest Works''

2001: ''O Canada'' (with Lara Fabian)

2002: ''Love Stories''

2003: ''Teko’s Theme - with Nita Whitaker''

2004: ''The Best Of Me - Original Recording Remastered''

2008: ''Hitman: David Foster and Friends''

2010: ''The Magic of David Foster & Friends''

2011: ''Hitman Returns: David Foster and Friends''

Singles

1985: "Love Theme From St. Elmo's Fire (For Just a Moment)" (US #15)

1986: "The Best of Me" (Duet with Olivia Newton-John) (US #80)

1988: "Winter Games (Can't You Feel It)" - Official theme song for the Calgary 1988 Winter Olympics (US #85)

Awards and honors

In 1995, Foster became the recipient of the Order of British Columbia, the highest honour awarded in his native province of British Columbia. Foster became an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2006.

Foster has won 15 Grammy Awards (three for producer of the year) and has been nominated a total of 46 times.

He has been nominated three times for an Academy Award for Best Song and won the 1999 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song for the song “The Prayer” (sung by Andrea Bocelli and Celine Dion) from the film ''Quest for Camelot''. He has been named BMI's "Songwriter of the Year". In June 2010, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

See also

Music of Canada

Canadian Music Hall of Fame

List of Canadian composers

References

Further reading

External links

Official website

David Foster on ''The Hour''

Category:Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States Category:Canadian pop musicians Category:Canadian record producers Category:Fellows of the Royal Conservatory of Music Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Golden Globe Award winning musicians Category:Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductees Category:Canadian humanitarians Category:Emmy Award winners Category:Juno Award winners Category:Members of the Order of British Columbia Category:Officers of the Order of Canada Category:People from Victoria, British Columbia Category:1949 births Category:Living people

bg:Дейвид Фостър de:David Foster es:David Foster fr:David Foster (compositeur) it:David Foster nl:David Foster (musicus) ja:デイヴィッド・フォスター no:David Foster pl:David Foster pt:David Foster ru:Фостер, Дэвид fi:David Foster sv:David Foster th:เดวิด ฟอสเตอร์