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In the span of one short decade,
Whitney Houston has become an international superstar in the worlds of
both music and motion pictures.
Her first four albums for Arista Records amassed global sales of over 86
million.
The Bodyguard featured Whitney in her first motion picture role,
co-starring with Oscar-winning actor-director Kevin Costner, and broke
box office records worldwide. Whitney received rave notices from critics
everywhere who praised her work in the film, opening up new horizons for
her.
Six Houston songs highlighted the 1992 released soundtrack for the film
and the response was phenomenal. To date, The Bodyguard is the biggest
selling motion picture soundtrack and has sold over 33 million copies
worldwide. "I Will Always Love You," the first single from The
Bodyguard, has become the largest selling commercial single in history,
while three other singles from the album; "I'm Every Woman,"
"I Have Nothing," and "Run To You" have been major
international hits for Whitney. In 1994, Whitney garnered a slew of
international awards including three Grammys, bringing her Grammy total
to five, as well as nineteen American Music Awards, seven Image Awards
from the N.A.A.C.P., five Peoples Choice Awards, two Emmys, five Soul
Train Awards, and in November 1995 she was inducted into the Soul Train
Hall of Fame.
Whitney's second movie, Waiting To Exhale, was released in December
1995. This critically acclaimed film, starring Whitney and Angela
Bassett, went on to gross over 70 million dollars at the box office. The
soundtrack for Waiting To Exhale, featuring three new tracks from
Whitney; "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)," "Count On Me,"
(duet with CeCe Winans) which was co-written by Whitney and Babyface,
and "Why Does It Hurt So Bad," quickly became a Number One
album which to date has sold over six million copies in the U.S.
In late May of 1996, Whitney completed filming her latest film project,
The Preacher's Wife, co-starring Denzel Washington and directed by Penny
Marshall.
The Preacher's Wife is scheduled to be released in December 1996. Also
scheduled for release a soundtrack album for The Preacher's Wife and a
Whitney Houston Greatest Hits album.
Through her mother, R&B;/Gospel star Cissy Houston, and her
legendary cousin Dionne Warwick, Whitneyhas been exposed to music since
birth. As a member of the New Hope Baptist Junior Choir in Newark, NJ
(where her mother has served as minister of music for many years),
Whitney developed into a soloist by the age of 11. Cissy Houston's
career helped provide Whitney with invaluable vocal training. Whitney
was singing backup for artists like Chaka Khan and Lou Rawls while in
her mid-teens, frequently appearing with Cissy in concert and local New
York Clubs. While she also began pursuing a career in modeling (gracing
the cover of magazines such as Glamour and Seventeen), her musical
ambitions received a boost when she teamed with superstar Teddy
Pendergrass for his 1984 hit "Hold Me."
Arista President Clive Davis signed Whitney Houston to the label in
1985, and her debut album, Whitney Houston, released the same year,
boasted a string of hits including; "You Give Good Love,"
"Saving All My Love For You," "How Will I Know," and
a song that has become virtually Whitney's anthem, "The Greatest
Love of All." Not only did the album establish Whitney as an
important new recording artist, it went on to sell over thirteen million
copies in the U.S., racking up several million more sales overseas;
becoming the biggest selling album by a solo artist.
With the much anticipated 1987 release of Whitney, Houston made history
when she became the first female artist to enter the album charts at #1.
Whitney included a stream of chart-toppers including; "I Wanna
Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)," "So Emotional,"
"Love Will Save The Day," and "Where Do Broken Hearts
Go," which established Whitney as the only artist to have seven
consecutive #1 hits, surpassing a record previously set by The Beatles
and The Bee Gees.
Her third powerhouse album I'm Your Baby Tonight, released in 1990,
displayed Whitney's versatility, spanning tough rhythmic grooves,
soulful ballads and up-tempo dance tracks, again setting sales records
as a multi-platinum seller internationally. She has gone on to become an
international household name, amassing countless awards and breaking box
office records with her concerts worldwide.
In 1989, Whitney formed The Whitney Houston Foundation For Children,
Inc., a non-profit organization, whose work assists with a variety of
children's issues; homeless children, children with cancer and AIDS, as
well as self-empowerment of today's youth.
In June of 1995, the foundation was awarded a VH-1 Honor for it's
charitable work. Houston has also given her time and energy to numerous
other benefits and worthwhile causes including; The United Negro College
Fund, The Children's Diabetes Fund, St. Jude's Children's Hospital and
several noted AIDS-related organizations.
In 1991 she performed for the homecoming troops of Desert Storm which
was filmed by HBO as "Welcome Home Heroes with Whitney
Houston," and in April of 1994 she made a surprise appearance and
performed at the Rainforest benefit put together by Sting at Carnegie
Hall.
Whitney spent the majority of 1994 on tour with dates in South America
and the United States. She brought the tour to a close with three
spectacular performances in South Africa, one of which was broadcast
live on HBO.
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Whitney Elizabeth Houston
Occupation
- Actress, Singer
Date of Birth
- 9 August 1963
Birth Place
- East Orange, New Jersey, USA
Mailing
Addresses
Whitney Houston
2160 North Central Road
Fort Lee, NJ 07024-7547
USA
- Show
me on the map
c/o pmk
955 S. Carrillo Dr. #200
Los Angeles, CA 90048
USA
- Show
me on the map
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