The legendary singer, actress, producer and mother, Whitney Houston, has died at age 48. It comes a surprise to all, but a devastation to the African American community. It seems that we continue to lose phenomenal artists, with uncompromising voices, unexpectedly.
It is only February of 2012 and the African American community has already lost 2 greats: Ms. Whitney Houston and Mr. Don Cornelius, founder of Soul Train. One thing worth learning from both of these two artists is that our successors deserve for us to leave them a legacy worth remembering.
"Crack is whack" is a phrase synonomous with Whitney after her interview an with ABC's Diane Sawyer. Despite this horrific statement (that I think she may have wanted to retract), one cannot argue that her music touched millions of lives since the 1980's. With the following hits, one cannot help but start singing to their self, dancing in their seat, or reminscing about a dance or ex- boyfriend or girlfriend.
- "Saving All My Love for You"
- "Greatest Love of All"
- "My Name is Not Susan"
- "I Will Always Love You"
- "Heartbreak Hotel"
- "It's Not Right, but It's Okay"
- "I Wanna Dance With Somebody"
- "I Look to You"
If one can only imagine the joy Houston's daughter must have felt to learn that her mother was the first female artist to enter the Billboard Album's charts at #1 in 1987. In addition, she has over 170 million combined album, singles, and videos sold during her career with Arista Records. Her voice, which was virtually flawless at her peak, has yet to be surpassed, if even reached by younger artists today.
Her performances of the hard-to-find rarities included "One Moment In Time," the 1988 Summer Olympics theme; 1991's Super Bowl XXV version of "The Star Spangled Banner"; left few dry eyes in the crowds. To date, one may argue that her no artist has performed these songs better, although many have tried and done well.
If you were to consider all the legacy and lineage that awaits for her daughter and the huge shoes to fill, all you can genuinely say is 'WOW'! And if we consider the same thing for our own children we still might have a 'wow' but not as great.
It is not to be said that we need to attempt to sell millions of albums, pack out stadiums, or have people clamour in hotel hallways to meet us. But we should leave a legacy for our children, grandchildren, and future generations worth remembering. Houston's death should be a wake up call that we need to begin walking in our purpose and using the gifts God has given us.
If you have a voice to sing-use it. If you can dance-do it. If you can write-publish it. What ever it is, share that gift with someone so that when you pass, your child(ren) will proudly proclaim who their parent was and what they did. You do not want your life to end and the memory of you nothing more than the dash between your birth and death year. You want that 'dash' to have a profound meaning, like the one Whitney Houston has.
Rest in Peace Miss Houston-1963-2012.
Facts and information retrieved from Whitney Houston.com
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