American gospel singer Cissy Houston, mother of Whitney Houston, has died at the age of 91, her daughter-in-law announced today.
“It is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing of our beloved Cissy Houston. Please pray for the Houston family,” Pat Houston said in her Instagram post.
Houston, who was surrounded by her family, was under hospice care for Alzheimer’s disease.
Emily Drinkard, as was her real name, was a soul and gospel singer. In her long career she did vocals for everything from Elvis Presley to Aretha Franklin as a member of the band The Sweet Inspirations. She recorded hundreds of songs and her voice can be heard accompanying Jimmy Hendrix and Beyoncé.
In her solo career she won two Grammy Awards for her albums “Face to Face” and “He Leadeth Me” in the late 1990s.
Her daughter, Whitney Houston, was one of America’s greatest female singers and rose to worldwide fame with songs such as “I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)” and “I Will Always Love You.” She was found dead in her bathtub in 2012 at the age of 48.
Cissy Houston was also the aunt of singers Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick and cousin of opera singer Leontine Price.
