Adele – winner of six Grammy Awards, mourning Whitney Houston

text and photo: Associated Press (AP)

Adele won six Grammy Awards, including the song of the year for “Rolling in the Deep,” best album ” 21” and best solo performance with “Someone Like You.”  

It was a ceremony that had the difficult task of celebrating music’s best while mourning the loss of Whitney Houston.

Adele’s first performance since her vocal cord surgery, was outstanding. ”I can’t believe I’m getting emotional already,” she said after picking up the latter award. “And seeing as it’s a vocal performance, I need to thank my doctors, I suppose, who brought my voice back.”

Another big winner of five Grammy’s; the Foo Fighters, noted that they made their album “Wasting Light” in a garage. List of all winners on AP.

 

“To me this award means a lot because it shows that the human element of making music is what’s most important. Singing into a microphone, learning to play an instrument and learning to do your craft, that’s the most important thing for people to do,” according to Dave Grohl.

Among the evening’s performances was a dance-heavy number by Chris Brown, a performance by Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen, who kicked off the show by performing his new song “We Take Care of Our Own.“

homage Whitney Houston

But the evening’s most moving moment came as Jennifer Hudson emerged to sing one of Houston’s signature songs, “I Will Always Love You.” Dressed in black, with only the accompaniment of a piano, Hudson appeared to fight back tears as she sang the song, ending with the line, “Whitney, we will always love you.“

The show started off on a somber note, as host LL Cool J appeared in black, and told the audience: “There is no way around this. We’ve had a death in our family.” In his performance of “Runaway Baby,” Bruno Mars also mentioned the death: “Tonight we’re celebrating. Tonight we’re celebrating the beautiful Miss Whitney Houston.” And Stevie Wonder said: “To Whitney up in heaven, we all love you.”

Houston died on the eve of the Grammys at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where she was preparing to attend a pre-Grammy party. Still, while Houston’s death cast a shadow over the night’s winners, it did not obscure them. Among them was Chris Brown, who was performing on the stage for the first time since he dropped out of 2009′s broadcast. Brown also won best R&B album.

Alicia Keys and Bonnie Raitt paid tribute to Etta James, the legend who died last month.

Whitney Houston – singer passed away at 48

text: Silvia Deurwaarder
photo: Reuters

The legendary American singer and actress Whitney Houston passed away at the age of 48. She was pronounced dead on Saturday afternoon around 4pm (local time California), despite resuscitation efforts.

The cause of her death is still unknown and investigated. Acccording to the police there were “no obvious signs of criminal intent.” In the afternoon more assumptions were revealed that she was drown in the bath.

Houston was supposed to appear at the 54th Grammy Awards gala tonight. Two days ago, she performed at a pre-Grammy party with singer Kelly Price.

She leaves behind Bobbi Kristina, her nineteen year old daughter with singer Bobby Brown. The entertainer was married with Brown from 1992-2007. Aretha Franklin was her godmother, says in a statement to CCN: ”I just can’t talk about it now. It’s so stunning and unbelievable. I couldn’t believe what I was reading coming across the TV screen. My heart goes out to Cissy (Houston’s mother), her daughter, her family and Bobby.”

Career

Whitney Houston sold more than 170 million albums worldwide. Fom the middle 1980s to the late 1990s, she was one of the world’s best selling artists.Winner of six Grammy Awards, the most respected music price. Famous for an extreme high voice, selling more than 55 million records in America, seven ‘number one’ singles.

Including “Saving All My Love For You,” “How Will I Know,” “The Greatest Love of All,” “Where Do Broken Hearts Go,” and “I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me).“

The soundtrack to the 1992 movie “The Bodyguard” is one of the top ten biggest-selling albums of all time. She also starred in the film with Kevin Costner. The soundtrack included the hit,”I Will Always Love You.”

Born on August 9, 1963, in New Jersey, Whitney ‘s career begins at the gospel choir; her powerful, and peerless vocals were rooted in the black church. Mother and aunt Dionne Warwick, were singers. Soul and gospel were always important to her. Even when she became famous as a popstar,and R&B singer.

Twenty years later music producer Clive Davis spotted Houston in a New York nightclub, according to her website. Since then he is Whitney’s mentor for 25 years. On Thursday, Davis told CNN: “With Houston, “I saw a depth and a range and soul .. that rarely ranks at the top level. And that’s why we’ve been working together ever since.“

Houston’s range spanned five octaves, and her voice was plush, vibrant and often spectacular. Made her album debut with ‘Whitney Houston’ in 1985. Later in 1991, during the Gulf War, she sang a moving rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner” at the Super Bowl.

In the mid nineties Whitney is successful with films like “The Bodyguard” and “The Preacher’s Wife,” but problems appear. Soon she was struggling; her voice grew smaller, scratchier and less secure.

In an interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2009 personally described as a “heavy” user of marijuana and cocaine.” A tumultuous marriage to Bobby Brown, a former “New Edition” star who has had multiple brushes with the law, doesn’t make it better.

In 1998′s well-reviewed ‘My Love is Your Love‘ release is overshadowed by personal matters. It ruins her reputation, becoming a subject for tabloids worldwide. Houston went to rehab twice and said she was drug-free in 2010.

Having a break  for several years before releasing her last album in seven years, “I Look to You,” in 2009. ”I just took a break, which sometimes you have to,” said Houston. “You have to know when to slow that train down and kind of just sit back and relax for a minute.” A long awaited come-back never came true.

Houston was set to appear in this year’s “Sparkle,” a remake of the 1976 hit, which was loosely based on the story of The Supremes. According to many tabloids Witney was approached to fill one of the vacant judges’ seats on American’s “The X Factor,” but those rumors were never confirmed.

Whitney Houston has been an inspiration for many musicians. Mariah Carry says: “My heartfelt condolences to Whitney’s family and to all her millions of fans throughout the world. She will never be forgotten as one of the greatest voices to ever grace the earth.”

Source: CCN, New York Times, ANP