Cissy Houston, Singer And Mother Of Whitney Houston, Dead At 91

Cissy Houston, two-time Grammy winning singer and mother of the late Whitney Houston, died on Monday (Oct. 7) at age 91 in her New Jersey home surrounded by family.

The news was confirmed by her daughter-in-law, Pat, to TheAssociated Press. Per the outlet, Cissy was in hospice for Alzheimer’s disease.

“Our hearts are filled with pain and sadness. We loss the matriarch of our family,” read a statement on behalf of the family. “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. We are touched by your generous support, and your outpouring of love during our profound time of grief. We respectfully request our privacy during this difficult time.”

Houston, the youngest of eight children, was born Emily Drinkard on Sept. 30, 1933 in Newark, New Jersey. She began singing in her childhood and formed a group with three of her siblings. They recorded one album as The Drinkard Four.

In 1955, Houston married Freddie Garland and had a son, Gary Garland. Two years later, she met John Russell Houston Jr. and welcomed two children: Michael in 1961 and Whitney in 1963.

Prior to giving birth to her daughter, Houston formed The Sweet Inspiratios with Doris Troy and niece Dee Dee Warrick. They sang background for the likes of Otis Redding, Lou Rawls, The Drifters and Dionne Warwick. The group notably appeared on Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl” and The Jimi Hendrix Experience’s “Burning of the Midnight Lamp” in 1967. That same year, Houston worked on Aretha Franklin’s classic, “Ain’t No Way.”

Together, The Sweet Inspirations released four albums before Houston embarked on a solo career.

Houston recorded over 600 songs spanning a variety of genres for Chaka Khan, Donny Hathaway, Jimi Hendrix, Luther Vandross, Beyoncé, Barbra Streisand, Paul Simon, Burt Bacharach, Roberta Flack and Whitney herself. Reporter Kurt Siegelin described Houston as the “gospel heartbeat” of New Hope Baptist Church, where she was named Minister of Sacred Music for her five decades of service.

Houston won her Grammys consecutively in 1997 and 1998 for her albums, Face to Face and He Leadeth Me for Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album. She also penned three books throughout her life: He Leadeth Me, How Sweet The Sound: My Life with God and Gospel, and Remembering Whitney: A Mother’s Story of Life, Loss and The Night The Music Stopped.

She was preceded in death by her siblings, parents, ex-husband John, daughter Whitney, and granddaughter Bobbi Kristina.

VIBE sends our deepest condolences to the Houston family at this time.