Whitney Houston: Tragic Diva the Epic Life and Shocking Death of Whitney Houston: The Epic Life and Shocking Death of Whitney Houston by David Cline

 
    Chapter One - “I’m Your Baby Tonight”
    Whitney Elizabeth Houston was born on August 9th, 1963, in urban Newark, New Jersey. The youngest of three children to parents John and Cissy Houston, Whitney was the baby and a favored child, particularly fawned on by her father, who nicknamed her “Nippy” after a cartoon character who frequently got into trouble. The nickname stuck her entire life and she was often referred to as “Nippy” by her close friends and relatives. Little did John know when he coined the nickname early in Whitney’s infancy what resonance it would have later in her life.
    John was a municipal worker for the city of Newark and Cissy was a notable performer in her own right, who had formed the very successful backup group “The Sweet Inspirations,” which provided backup vocals to many of the music industry’s most famous singers, including Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett, Mahalia Jackson, Otis Redding, Jimi Hendrix, and Elvis Presley.
    Cissy was the decisive breadwinner of the family and a strong and inspiring female-figure and role model to the young Whitney, who often referred to her mother, “the most important person in my life...”
    Amidst the turmoil of the late 1960s, racial tensions were gripping the country. In 1967, race riots broke out in Newark, prompting John and Cissy to move their young family a few miles away to the more middle class area of East Orange, New Jersey, where they hoped to feel safer.
    Cissy held the position of choirmaster at New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, which she maintained in addition to her ongoing successful singing career. But the Houston family talent didn’t stop with Cissy. It reached to the extended family as well, with Dionne Warwick a first cousin to Whitney and Aretha Franklin her godmother. Considering such strong, talented, and inspiring musical women surrounding her, is it any wonder Whitney grew up with music literally in her blood?
    With her mother as music director, Whitney was easily brought into the New Hope junior gospel choir, and at the age of 12, she debuted in front of the group, singing the solo for the first time, a soulful Spiritual called “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah.”
    The response was immediate and profound, with cheers and a thunderous ovation resounding through the church.
    Cissy’s “Baby” was on her way...

 
    Chapter Two - “Step By Step”
    As a teenager, Whitney attended Mount Saint Dominic Catholic Girls School in Caldwell, New Jersey, and did her best to please her parents, especially her mother, who continued to help develop Whitney’s voice and talent. By the age of 14, she was already being recognized for that voice, and in 1977, “Nippy” got her first big professional break as a featured singer on a single called “Life’s A Party,” for the Michael Zager Band. In fact, Zager was so impressed with the young performer’s abilities that he volunteered to try and secure a record contract for her. Though very tempted, Whitney’s mother wanted her daughter to finish her education first and refused Zager’s uncommon offer.
    Besides, Cissy had connections of her own. In 1978, at age 15, Whitney sang backup on the Chaka Khan hit “I’m Every Woman,” and then again a year later, she joined her mother singing vocals on Chaka Khan’s “Papillon.” Before the age of 20, Houston was regularly backing up singers like Lou Rawls and Jermaine Jackson.
    Step by step, she was getting known -- and fast.
    But music wasn’t the only business Whitney was getting recognized in. The modeling industry had taken notice of her as well.
    Several stories circulate as to how Houston began modeling professionally.
    One describes how in the early 1980’s while appearing at a concert in
    Carnegie Hall with Cissy, a fashion photographer noticed Whitney’s striking, fresh-faced looks, and she was discovered outright. Another tells of a modeling agent spotting her and her mother walking along 5th Avenue in New York