Cissy Houston, the Grammy-winning gospel singer and mother of the late Whitney Houston, has passed away at the age of 91. Houston died peacefully at her home in New Jersey on Monday, Oct. 7, while receiving hospice care for Alzheimer’s disease, according to her daughter-in-law, Pat Houston.
“Our hearts are heavy with anguish and sadness. We lost the matriarch of our family,” Pat said in a statement to the press. “Mother Cissy has been a powerful and towering presence in our lives. She was a woman of unwavering faith and conviction, placing a high priority on her family, ministry, and community. We will remember her more than seven-decade career in music and entertainment with fondness.”
Cissy Houston was also the aunt of renowned singers Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick. She began her music career in 1938 as a member of the Drinkard Four, a gospel group that included her sister Anne and two of their brothers, Larry and Nicky. By 1963, Cissy had formed The Sweet Inspirations with her niece Dee Dee Warwick, a vocal group that soon became highly sought after as backup singers for major artists like Otis Redding, Dusty Springfield, and Wilson Pickett. They also worked with The Jimi Hendrix Experience in 1967 and performed alongside Elvis Presley in 1969.
Despite her success with The Sweet Inspirations, Cissy Houston made a name for herself as a solo artist. She released her first solo album This is My Vow in 1963 and followed it with Presenting Cissy Houston in 1970, featuring notable singles like “Be My Baby” and “I’ll Be There.” She also contributed as a backup singer on Bette Midler’s debut album in 1972.
During her lifetime, Houston was honored with two Grammy Awards. In 1996, she won Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album for Face to Face, and in 1998 she received another Grammy for her gospel album He Leadeth Me. Her deep voice and gospel roots heavily influenced her daughter Whitney, who grew up singing in the church choir just like the rest of the family. “Cissy had an incredible voice, and that transferred to her baby, Whitney,” Dionne Warwick said in an interview with PEOPLE magazine earlier this year. “Whitney grew up in the church choir, just like the rest of us. It was preordained that she would sing. Her destiny was the same as the rest of the family’s.”
One of the more touching moments in Cissy’s career came in 1987 when she recorded the duet “I Know Him So Well” with her daughter Whitney. The family came together again in 2006 when Cissy, Whitney, and Dionne collaborated on the song “Family First” for the film Daddy’s Little Girls.
In addition to her music, Cissy Houston was married twice. She was first married to NBA basketball player Gary Garland from 1955 until their divorce in 1997, and they had a son together, Gary. Later, she met John Russell Houston, Whitney’s father, in 1958, and they married before eventually divorcing in 1991. Houston was a loving grandmother and great-grandmother, leaving behind six grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.
Cissy openly discussed her daughter Whitney’s tragic battle with drug addiction, which eventually led to Whitney’s death by drowning in a hotel bathtub in February 2012. In her 2013 memoir Remembering Whitney, Cissy shared her heartbreak over Whitney’s downward spiral, writing, “She started partying, and she didn’t really know how to stop. I used to wonder what she was doing at night, where she was.” She admitted feeling grief and anger over Whitney’s death, saying, “I’m angry she died alone, in those conditions. I’m still mad about that.”
Five months after Whitney’s death, Cissy paid tribute to her daughter at the BET Awards, moving the audience with a powerful rendition of “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” Cissy was also close friends with Aretha Franklin, and after Aretha’s passing in 2018, Cissy shared her sadness, saying, “Aretha was my dear friend who I will deeply miss. We have shared heartbreak and loss, as well as exaltation and great laughter—and most importantly, our mutual love of God.”
Cissy Houston’s contributions to gospel music and her profound influence on her family and the music world as a whole will not be forgotten. Her remarkable voice, her strength in faith, and her enduring legacy will continue to resonate for generations.