Why we still root for Whitney Houston

I am so pulling for Whitney as I said yesterday. This is a tough road and it is only tougher when it is done in the public. I wonder if Smokey has ever talked to Whitney about his struggles and how he has stayed clean for so long. Come on Whitney we need you, but your daughter needs you more.

It seems like an eternity ago, but at one point in our popular culture history, Whitney Houston could do no wrong. At the height of career, she was one of the world's most beloved pop stars, topping the charts, winning all the awards, selling out movie theaters and concert arenas. She was the girl next door with the golden voice and everyone loved her. But, that was, as far as her formerly adoring public is concerned, an eternity ago.

That was Clive Davis' Whitney. That was pre-marriage to Bobby Brown Whitney. That was long before she ever uttered the words "crack is wack" Whitney. Today, she would be unrecognizable to most, as the now 47 year old singer/actress has all but lost the luster, the looks, and the voice that captured her fans hearts when she burst on the scene in the mid-1980s. The years of hard partying and lacing marijuana with rock cocaine, as she described in an interview with Oprah, have taken a huge toll.

Even still, there was a glimmer of hope that, though she would never fully return, shades of our beloved Whitney would make themselves known. In 2009, she made a triumphant return to music with the album I Look to You and the hit single "Million Dollar Bill." It was the first time Houston sat atop of the Billboard charts since 1992, with the release of The Bodyguard soundtrack. She still wasn't particularly impressive in her live shows, but at the very least she appeared sober and making quality music was a priority. Our Whitney was coming back.

Then yesterday the news broke that Houston had entered an out-patient rehab program for drug and alcohol abuse. The announcement came on the heels of the recent revelation from Golden Globe winning actress Angela Bassett that a sequel to the 1995 hit film Waiting to Exhale was in the works with the entire original principal cast, of which Houston was a part. Just as her career appears to be experiencing a revival, Whitney is relapsing.

The reactions to the news varied. Some weren't very surprised, but for the most part people have been genuinely concerned. After all she has given us and all that she's been through, those touched by her body of work wanted Whitney to win, at least one more time. They were rooting for the fairy tale ending.

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