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
Whitney Houston (album) on AC stations. However the single received an official release in Japan and many European countries. To further promote her debut album and first US Pop hit single "You Give Good Love", Houston went on tour performing at clubs, theaters and festivals. By August 1985, she was featured as a support act at selected dates on individual tours by singers Luther Vandross and Jeffrey Osborne. Whitney Houston (album) Whitney Houston is the debut studio album by American contemporary R&B and pop singer Whitney Houston. It was released on February 14, 1985, by Arista Records. The album initially had a slow