Grammy winner Emily “Cissy” Houston, mother of the late pop icon Whitney Houston, has died from natural causes. She was 91.
Houston died Monday morning in her New Jersey home while under hospice care for Alzheimer’s disease, The Associated Press reported.
Her daughter-in-law Pat Houston confirmed her death to The Associated Press. She said the gospel singer was surrounded by her family.
“Our hearts are filled with pain and sadness. We lost the matriarch of our family,” Pat Houston said in a statement.
“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.”
She continued: “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.”
Cissy Houston (2nd from right) is pictured with Dionne Warwick, and singer/songwriters Nick Ashfrord and Valerie Simpson.
Cissy taught her daughter, Whitney, how to sing. She gave Whitney her start singing in the choir at New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey.
Whitney joined her mother’s band as a background singer during Cissy’s performances on the cabaret club circuit in New York.
Cissy was a member of The Drinkard Singers and the founder of The Sweet Inspirations before becoming a solo artist.
Cissy won Grammys for her gospel albums Face to Face in 1997 and He Leadeth Me in 1998.
Cissy Houston authored three books: “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.”
