NEWARK, USA — Cissy Houston, the Grammy-winning gospel singer and mother of the late Whitney Houston, passed away at her home on Monday, October 7, 2024, at the age of 91.
She had been under hospice care, battling Alzheimer’s disease. Her daughter-in-law, Pat Houston, confirmed the news.
“Our hearts are filled with pain and sadness. We lost the matriarch of our family,” Pat Houston said in a statement.
“Mother Cissy has been a strong and towering figure in our lives. A woman of deep faith and conviction, who cared greatly about family, ministry, and community. Her more than seven-decade career in music and entertainment will remain at the forefront of our hearts.”
Cissy Houston, born Emily Drinkard, began her illustrious music career in 1938, singing with her siblings in a group called the Drinkard Four.
In 1963, she co-founded the Sweet Inspirations, providing backing vocals for legends like Otis Redding, Dusty Springfield, and Wilson Pickett.
The group also collaborated with icons like Elvis Presley and Jimi Hendrix.
Houston launched her solo career in 1970, releasing the album Presenting Cissy Houston, which featured hits like “Be My Baby” and “I’ll Be There.”
Over her long career, she won two Grammy Awards, including Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album in 1996 for Face to Face and again in 1998 for He Leadeth Me.
In a tribute, her niece Dionne Warwick said earlier this year, “Cissy had an incredible voice and that transferred to her little baby, Whitney… It was just preordained, she was going to sing.”
Houston’s career intertwined with her family’s legacy.
In 1987, she recorded the duet “I Know Him So Well” with her daughter Whitney, and in 2006, she performed “Family First” alongside Whitney and Dionne.
Cissy Houston’s personal life was marked by both triumph and tragedy.
She was married to NBA player Gary Garland and later to John Russell Houston, with whom she shared three children: Whitney, Michael, and Gary.
The couple separated in 1991. She had six grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.
Her 2013 memoir, Remembering Whitney, candidly addressed her daughter Whitney’s struggles with substance abuse.
“She started partying and didn’t really know how to stop,” Houston wrote, reflecting on the challenges of helping Whitney through her addiction.
She also expressed her pain over her daughter’s tragic death in 2012, saying, “I’m angry she died alone, in those conditions. I’m still mad about that.”
In recent years, Houston paid public tributes to those she had lost, including her close friend Aretha Franklin, with whom she shared a long personal and professional relationship.
Cissy Houston’s legacy in gospel and soul music, as well as her devotion to her family, will be remembered by fans and loved ones alike.
She is survived by her children, grandchildren, and a vast network of family and friends who will carry her memory forward.
