Wendy Williams Breaks Down Discussing Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston's passing over the weekend came as a shock to nearly everyone, but the tragedy seemed to hit a little too close to home for Wendy Williams. The talk show host broke down in tears while talking about Houston, saying she felt connected to the iconic singer because of their similar struggles with substance abuse.
“I felt very close to Whitney even though this is a woman I’ve never met. I’ve never even been in the same room with her except for one time in my life,” she started. “Some of the things Whitney and I have in common that bonded us: the love of our mother and our father … and both plagued with the demon of substance abuse.”
Williams, choking up, went on to quietly explain her own past struggles with addiction and said she had hoped to one day meet the singer, whom she interviewed on the radio in 2003. “It’s been almost 15 years since I last smoked ... from a crack pipe. It’s been almost 15 years since I waited on Jerome Avenue in the Bronx for my drugs,” she said. “I knew I’d meet her one day, but I always pictured that time to be in our late 50s, 60s, with her being the No. 1 spokesperson for ‘Say No.’ I just for some reason thought that’s what she’d do. It’s what I want to do. I just thought we’d meet, and we’d hug and we’d be sober and older.”
Williams then asked her viewers to use the singer’s death as a reason to reach out to those with addiction problems. “I’m one of the lucky ones," she finished.
Houston's body was flown back to New Jersey on Tyler Perry's jet on Monday and funeral plans are underway. No official details have been shared as yet, perhaps because Whitney's loved ones — including her 18-year-old daughter Bobbi Kristina, who was hospitalized following a breakdown on Sunday — need some time to absorb the shock before such an event can take place.
Check out the video of Williams' candid revelations above.
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