Whitney Houston Research Paper

The concept of a tragic hero can also be applied to real life individuals. For example, Whitney Houston, widely known for her music and acting, began her life as a common woman before achieving high status in the eyes of the music industry. To begin, Whitney Houston was born in Newark, New Jersey on August 9th, 1963. Houston’s mother, Cissy Houston was a background singer in soul music with Houston’s father, John Houston. Regardless, Houston still had a regular childhood being a shy and lonely girl as Houston commented, “my parents were exceptionally good at raising children. My mother made sure we had a normal childhood”(5). Her debut album, Whitney Houston, was released in 1985, sparking her recognition as an artist, making Houston’s album

Showing her mastery of different styles, Whitney Houston became one of the greatest female singers of her time and beyond, wide vocal range and gospel-like voice influencing many others, making her an international star and an inspiration in the eyes of

Houston was accused of drug and alcohol abuse along with not being “black enough”, having a bisexual relationship with Robyn Crawford, and Houston entering several rehab facilities but continuing her drug use. Notably, during her VH1 tribute concert for Michael Jackson in 2001, Houston was thin, her voice being strained. Consequently, people had referred to Houston being gaunt, unwell, and anorexic. With this in mind, Houston began trying to debunk those claims saying, “I’m not sick. I’ve always been a thin girl”(6). As stated before, Houston’s 2002 interview was when she was accused of being addicted to crack by Diane Sawyer. Houston’s reputation was gradually deteriorating, Houston’s denial about the situation led her to make a plethora of poor decisions that just caused Houston’s reputation to crumble more. As things got worse, in 2006 Houston’s marriage to Bobby Brown had ended and the next year the two got divorced(4). Scattered performances that made her audience walk out on her. Finally, on February 11th 2012, Houston was found dead in a bathtub of her hotel suite, paramedics unsuccessfully trying to revive her. Houston had drowned, officials saying that her heart disease and cocaine use were also factors that caused her death(6). Houston’s death was then considered accidental, a