I can’t remember the first time I heard the song “I Will Always Love You”. I could recognize Whitney Houston’s cover from when I was a child. Yet behind that beautiful voice was a woman who battled her demons publically, tarnishing her image as a star.
When the news broke, many people commented on the news pieces that her death was likely the result of her drug use. We will have to wait for the reports of her autopsy and toxics screening to know the real cause.
The Grammys this past week offered tributes to the deceased singer. Jennifer Hudson sang a cover of “I Will Always Love You” highly reminiscent of Houston’s interpretation of Dolly Parton’s song. LL Cool J started the show by saying “There’s been a death in the family”.
Fans have been leaving tributes at her New Jersey home and the funeral home according to The Star Ledger, a Newark-based newspaper. Even NJ governor Chris Christie acknowledged her talent, calling her “a true New Jersey treasure”.
Yet this reputation has other facets. Houston experienced the downward spiral of drug abuse, a marriage to singer Bobbie Brown that ended in divorce and has a daughter the age of some of our Her Campus readers. This mixed legacy reminds us, that despite her angelic vocals, she was human too.
Sources:
Grammys Broadcast
http://blog.nj.com/njv_editorial_page/2012/02/whitney_houston_deserves_new_j.html#incart_hbx
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/14/whitney-houstons-funeral-_n_1275732.html?ref=celebrity
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/13/whitney-houston-death-dolly-parton-estate-record-sales_n_1273323.html