In Memory of Whitney Houston
The BET Awards remembers the beloved music icon.
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Whitney Houston: (8/9/63 – 2/11/12) - When Whitney Houston came onto the scene in 1985, she paved the way for other African-American female R&B artists by setting record after record and winning award after award. Tonight, the pop icon, who tragically passed on February 11, 2012, was remembered during the BET Awards for her success in changing the face of the music industry.
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Whitney's Musical Lineage - As daughter of gospel singer Cissy Houston, it's clear that Whitney Houston was destined to impact the music industry, especially when you consider her other family ties — cousins Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick and godmother Aretha Franklin.
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Whitney's Chart-Topping Debut - In 1985, Whitney Houston's self-titled debut album, which featured classics like "Saving All My Love for You," "Greatest Love of All" and "How Will I Know," was noted as the best-selling debut album by a female artist at the time. The follow-up, 1987's Whitney, was the first album by a female to debut at the top of the Billboard 200 albums chart.
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Second Time Around - For her sophomore album Whitney, the singer produced four number one hits, a record at the time for a female artist. The up-tempo track "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)," a huge hit for Houston both domestically and overseas, sold more than a million copies. The project also spawned other hits like "Didn't We Almost Have It All," "So Emotional," "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" and "Love Will Save the Day." Houston was acknowledged for her accomplishments, walking away with a Grammy for the Best Pop Vocal Performer – Female at the 30th Grammy Awards the following year.
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Whitney Sings National Anthem at Super Bowl XXV - Whit was given the honor of singing the national anthem at the Super Bowl XXV in 1991. The New York Giants beat the Buffalo Bills 20-10, and Houston wowed viewers across the country with her powerful vocal performance.
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I'm Your Baby Tonight World Tour - Whitney kicked off her I'm Your Baby Tonight world tour in 1991 in support of her four-times-platinum-selling third studio album of the same name. The tour kicked off in the U.S. in Norfolk, Virginia, on March 31 with her "Welcome Home Heroes" concert, which was aired on HBO and dedicated to troops serving the country in the Gulf War.
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Whitney Stars in First Film: The Bodyguard - In 1992, Whitney starred opposite Kevin Costner in the romantic thriller The Bodyguard, a film about a man (Costner) commissioned to protect a superstar (Houston) whose life is being threatened by an unidentified stalker. The soundtrack for the movie featured "I Will Always Love You," "I Have Nothing" and "I'm Every Woman," three more of Houston's classics, and sold a million copies in one week. It went on to win the coveted Grammy Award for Album of the Year and was certified 17 times platinum by 1999. The album has sold more than 44 million copies worldwide to date and carries the distinction of being the best-selling soundtrack in history. (Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures)
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Whitney Stars in Waiting to Exhale - Whitney followed up her silver-screen debut in The Bodyguard with her role as Savannah in the Forest Whitaker-directed film Waiting to Exhale (1995). The film's accompanying soundtrack featured songs from Houston including "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)," which won a Grammy in 1997 for Best R&B song, and "Count on Me." Brandy, Toni Braxton, Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle, Mary J. Blige, SWV and TLC were the other main contributors to the album, which was certified seven times platinum by 1996. (Photo: 20th Century Fox)
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Whitney Performs at World Music Awards - After some time out of the spotlight, Whitney performs at the 2004 World Music Awards in Las Vegas.(Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
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Whitney Honored at American Music Awards - Three months after the release of her seventh studio album, I Look to You, the singer was named Favorite Artist at the American Music Awards in Los Angeles in November 2009.
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