the same song at that Grammy Awards ceremony, Billboard’s Artist Of The Year for 1986, and spawned her worldwide “The Greatest Love” tour.
From this moment on, it was a definitive fact -- this was no “one hit wonder” or “flash in the pan” -- Whitney Houston was here to stay.
Chapter Four - “Queen Of The Night”
With the wild success of her debut album, three Number 1 singles, one Emmy, one Grammy and two more nominations, an Artist of the Year award, and a standing-room-only World Tour already to her credit before her 25th birthday, there was no doubt that Whitney Houston was well on her way to superstardom.
In 1987, “Greatest Love Of All” was again nominated, this time for a Record of the Year award by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which only added momentum to her rise and excitement to her long-anticipated second album, Whitney, which was releaseed in June of that year. Whitney included no less than four consecutive Number 1 hits: “I Wanna Dance With Somebody,” “Didn’t We Almost Have It All,” “So Emotional,” and “Where Do Broken Hearts Go?” This feat (along with her previous three Number 1 releases) combined to produce seven back to back Number 1 singles and broke the all time record for number of consecutive Number 1 hits -- until that time a title jointly shared by The Bees Gees and The Beatles with records of six each, respectively. Whitney also led Houston to be the first female recording artist ever to debut at Number 1 in the Billboard Top 200 Chart, as well as the first female artist ever to produce four Number 1 hits on a single album. While some critics were slightly cooler to this release, there was no arguing its massive commercial success. After the release of Whitney, she launched out on her hugely successful “Moment Of Truth” World Tour.
Houston was also nominated three more times at the Grammy Awards of 1988, winning again for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Female, for “I Wanna Dance WIth Somebody (Who Loves Me).”
Once again, Whitney Houston’s enormous talent and great success would not be denied. In a few short years she had gone from “exciting newcomer” to bona-fide international star. She was everywhere -- on the radio, music videos, television interview programs, concerts, and live performances.
She truly was “The Queen Of The Night.”
Chapter Five - “All The Man That I Need”
With all that Whitney Houston had already achieved in such a short span of time, it was hard to know where to turn next with her mega-watt stardom. At 25, she was already the highest-earning African-American woman in the country and the 8th highest-earning entertainer overall. She had already conquered humble beginnings, the print world, and the monster that is the music industry. She was a model for what was possible across all lines of race and gender.
Yet, there were some who were concerned with Whitney’s prosperity. There emerged a small body of voices in the African-American community who were openly critical of Whitney, feeling that she had sold out some of her more urban roots in favor of an easy rise to the top. This hurt and disturbed Houston and she rejected the criticism, responding in the best way she knew how -- through her music.
Her third album, “I’m Your Baby Tonight,” released in November of 1990, is a clear answer to those critics, taking a decided step with a more urban tone. Whitney produced the album herself in collaboration with artists such as Stevie Wonder, Babyface, and Luther Vandross. While not a critical success, the album did reach Number 3 on the U.S. Billboard 200 Chart and produced two Number 1 hits with the title track, “I’m Your Baby Tonight,” and “All The Man I Need.” Two other releases from this album, “Miracle” and “My Name Is Not Susan,” made the Billboard Top 20.
Around this same period, possibly disillusioned by the unexpected conflict with her community and the
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