Whitney Houston 2, 2003), and gospel singer Emily "Cissy" (Drinkard) Houston. Her elder brother Michael is a singer, and her elder half-brother is former basketball player Gary Garland. Her parents were both African American. Through her mother, Houston was a first cousin of singers Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick. Her godmother was Darlene Love and her honorary aunt was Aretha Franklin, whom she met at age 8 or 9 when her mother took her to a recording studio. Houston was raised a Baptist, but was also exposed to the Pentecostal church. After the 1967 Newark riots, the family moved to a
Lady Soul #3 on "Billboard"'s Black Albums, Pop Albums and Jazz Albums charts respectively. The single "Ain't No Way" – B-Side of "Since You've Been Gone (Sweet, Sweet, Baby)" – peaked at #9 on the Black Singles chart and #16 on the Pop Singles chart. Gospel/R&B singer Cissy Houston (mother of Whitney Houston) and her group the Sweet Inspirations are credited as background vocals on several tracks, along with Aretha's sisters Carolyn and Erma Franklin. In 2003 the TV network VH1 named "Lady Soul" the 41st greatest album of all time. It is number 85 on "Rolling Stone"s list "The 500 Greatest