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Whitney Houston I Look to You: healing power of music
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Whitney Houston at NYC event
August 31, 2009 is the long awaited date of Whitney Houston's return to pop music's center stage with the release of her new album, I Look to You. I Look to You is Houston's seventh studio album since her self titled debut in 1985, which sold more than 20,000,000 units and remains the highest selling debut album in the world. Under the mentorship of Arista Records music producer Clive Davis, Whitney Houston has created a body of work that reads like a Guinness Book of Records: the first female artist to enter the Billboard album chart at #1; the only artist with seven consecutive multi-platinum albums; the only artist to chart seven consecutive #1 Billboard Hot 100 hits. Whitney's voice is an instrument and she has shared it with the world to the tune of more than 170,000,000 videos, singles and albums sold worldwide. She is the recipient of more than 400 awards including 22 Grammys, two Emmys, 35 American Music Awards, 17 Soul Train Awards and 16 Billboard Awards. Houston's staggering success has made it that much more difficult for people to accept her fall from grace aided by erratic public behavior and admitted drug use. What, then, is so special about Whitney Houston? Perhaps the answer is in the healing power of music.
Music is universal in its appeal. An ancient form of creative expression, music impacts all of humanity. The Mayo Clinic in Rochester has added music therapy to its Healing Enhancement Program. According to Mayo, "listening to music helps patients relax and feel less tense, it helps decrease pain, improve patients' moods and promote better sleep."
Massage therapists, Reiki practitioners and others who perform energy healing often play New Age instrumentals or classical music to help clients focus and relax. As they relax, they become more receptive to healing energies. Tibetan singing bowls are used in sound energy healing, a modality that uses vibrational sound as a method of healing.
St. Augustine is quoted as saying, "those who sing pray twice." Making music with the body is intuitive. Infants rock, hum and try to mouth words to music long before they are able to speak. Singing is soothing and it feels good and right. Some health benefits of singing include:
- releases endorphins (hormones that energize and uplift)
- strengthens the immune system
- reduces muscle tension and improves coordination
- improves oxygen flow to the brain and blood system
- increases breath control which can be excellent for asthma or panic attacks
Singing opens and balances chakras (energy centers). It sets the stage for deeper meditation and a stronger connection to the universe. Breathing stimulates the second and third (sacral and power) chakras as you inhale, and the fourth and fifth (heart and throat) chakras as you push sound from your diaphragm. When you sing your vocal chords resonate with sound causing the head to vibrate, and the brain is stimulated as it processes the mathematical aspects of music. This activity opens the sixth and seventh (third eye and crown) chakras, empowering you to more clearly self-reflect and draw upon wisdom from the universe. Singing is a powerful method of aligning mind, body and spirit.
When considering the comeback of Whitney Houston, include the good you may do yourself by purchasing or downloading I Look to You. You can hear the entire CD on the official Whitney Houston Web site at www.whitneyhouston.com. Whitney's music is nothing if not inspiration to sing along with tunes that offer positive messages of love, enjoyment and the redemptive power of faith.
Don't miss Whitney Houston performing on ABC News Good Morning America to air Wednesday, September 2, 2009. Tune in on September 14, 2009 as Oprah Winfrey launches the 24th season of The Oprah Winfrey Show with Whitney Houston's exclusive first interview. If you're in L.A., stop in at the viewing party for this exciting segment of the Oprah Winfrey show at Lucy Florence Cultural Center, 3351 W. 43rd Street, Los Angeles, CA 90008. The show airs at 3 PM and will be shown on large screens throughout the venue. For more information call (323) 293-1356.
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