Shortly after 1.00am UK time the death of soul singer Whitney Houston was announced. Whitney Houston was aged 48 at the time of her death.
The singer first became known in the UK in 1985 as a teenager with a voice that sounded like it came from a woman much older, full of depth and soul. A glittering career lay ahead of her with Emmy, Grammy, Billboard Music Awards and American Music Awards. Houston broke records when it came to music sales, The Bodyguard soundtrack became the biggest selling soundtrack ever.
With her squeaky clean image no one would have guessed that later in her career she would be struggling with a well-documented drugs and drink battle - a battle which would last for more than a decade and remained with her.
Sadly, Whitney isn't the first singer to find their lives blighted by addiction and she won't be the last. It doesn't matter how famous or talented you are, drugs and drink have the same affect, and it was sad to see a woman with one of the most amazing voices the world has ever heard lose years of her career to her addiction. It was even sadder to see someone with such talent being ridiculed in the media for not having the voice that she once had or for not being the person that she used to be. Addiction is an illness and the addiction that marred her life should have been treated as such.
Despite her personal struggles, Whitney Houston seemed to be getting her life and career back together. Her 2009 comeback album I Look To You did well even if her comeback tour wasn't quite the success it could have been. She was in talks to work on the X Factor USA and had recently completed a movie. She was also set to appear at the Grammys. The show will now be a very different one than the one that had been planned; artists will be paying tribute to the singer and rightly so; as one of the world's biggest selling female artists, she paved the way for a lot of them.
Some are saying they aren't surprised at the news but I am. Her worst battles had seemed to be behind her and while some stars do seemed destined to have their lives end in tragedy, I didn't think Whitney Houston would be one of them.
Her death is a sad loss to the music world, to her family, and to those closest to her. Beautiful, talented, and for many years living a life that most people can only ever dream of, it seems that having everything going for you isn't always enough.
The singer first became known in the UK in 1985 as a teenager with a voice that sounded like it came from a woman much older, full of depth and soul. A glittering career lay ahead of her with Emmy, Grammy, Billboard Music Awards and American Music Awards. Houston broke records when it came to music sales, The Bodyguard soundtrack became the biggest selling soundtrack ever.
With her squeaky clean image no one would have guessed that later in her career she would be struggling with a well-documented drugs and drink battle - a battle which would last for more than a decade and remained with her.
Sadly, Whitney isn't the first singer to find their lives blighted by addiction and she won't be the last. It doesn't matter how famous or talented you are, drugs and drink have the same affect, and it was sad to see a woman with one of the most amazing voices the world has ever heard lose years of her career to her addiction. It was even sadder to see someone with such talent being ridiculed in the media for not having the voice that she once had or for not being the person that she used to be. Addiction is an illness and the addiction that marred her life should have been treated as such.
Despite her personal struggles, Whitney Houston seemed to be getting her life and career back together. Her 2009 comeback album I Look To You did well even if her comeback tour wasn't quite the success it could have been. She was in talks to work on the X Factor USA and had recently completed a movie. She was also set to appear at the Grammys. The show will now be a very different one than the one that had been planned; artists will be paying tribute to the singer and rightly so; as one of the world's biggest selling female artists, she paved the way for a lot of them.
Some are saying they aren't surprised at the news but I am. Her worst battles had seemed to be behind her and while some stars do seemed destined to have their lives end in tragedy, I didn't think Whitney Houston would be one of them.
Her death is a sad loss to the music world, to her family, and to those closest to her. Beautiful, talented, and for many years living a life that most people can only ever dream of, it seems that having everything going for you isn't always enough.
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