Timeline of Whitney Houston

Grammy Award-winning singer, Whitney Houston was known for her powerful vocals all over the world. She was the one who paved the path for many other African-Americans to follow suit. This talented artiste created her own unique identity in her career although the scene was dominated by male rock at that time. She made her mark in Hollywood with he Bodyguard.

Apart from singing, she was also a film producer, record producer, former fashion model as well as a songwriter. She also has a place in the Guinness Book of World Records as the Most Awarded Female Artist of All Time. A favorite amongst many, here is the timeline that marks some of the important events in her life till date.

1963
Whitney Elizabeth Houston was born on August 9, in 1963. She was born in Newark, New Jersey. Whitney's mother, Cissy was a notable gospel singer.

1977
Whitney became the lead singer of a band at only 14 years of age. This was also the year when she was offered a contract but Cissy Houston declined it because studies were considered to be a priority.

1979
Whitney sang the background vocals for the Chaka Khan hit - I'm every woman.

1980
She had her tryst with modeling during the early 1980s. She was spotted by a photographer at the Carnegie Hall. This led to a modeling offer, which propelled her to the covers of the Vogue magazine. This year, she also appeared in a soft drink commercial.

1983
She gave a very impressive performance with her mother in a New York city nightclub. This impressed Gerry Griffith, representative of Arista Records.

She also won the heart of Clive Davis (Head of Arista Records) with her powerful singing. Thus, she signed her first recording contract this year with Arista Records. Although the contract was signed this year, work for the album did not begin immediately.

1985
This year saw the release of Whitney's self-titled debut album. This album was released on February 14, 1985.

1986
Her album reached the number one slot in March 1986. This was also the same year when she won a Grammy Award for the album and was also recorded as the Best Album of 1986 by the Rolling Stone. She also won her first Grammy Award for the Best Pop Vocal Performance, Best Female Performer (Saving All My Love For You).

1987
She scaled new heights of popularity and stardom this year. Most of her singles touched the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100. June 1987 also saw the release of her 2nd album - Whitney.

1988
She was nominated for 3 awards. She also received her second Grammy Award for the Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for her hit track - I Wanna Dance With Somebody.

1990
Her third studio album was released in November 1990 titled I'm Your Baby Tonight.

1991
Whitney turned out to be the only singer who turned a national anthem into a hit track, which reached the Top 20 on the US Hot 100.

1992
She starred in the box office hit The Bodyguard where she made her first big screen debut. She also recorded six tracks for the soundtrack album. Her track I Will Always Love You (A Dolly Parton hit) became one of her biggest hits.

1993
She went on a worldwide tour.

1995
She co-produced her album, Waiting to Exhale with Babyface.

1996
She recorded The Preacher's Wife: Original Soundtrack Album and co-produced it with Mervyn Warren.

1997
This year, she performed for a televised concert Classic Whitney, for HBO.

1998
This year saw the release of her album My Love Is Your Love in the month of November.

1999
She participated with Mary J. Blige, Cher and Tina Turner in the VH-1's Divas' Live '99.

2000
Whitney's double disc album titled Whitney: The Greatest Hits was released in April 2000. She was also the first recipient for the BET Lifetime Achievement Award for her notable contribution towards black music.

2001
She signed one of the biggest deals this year. In August, she signed a record deal with Arista/BMG.

2002
She released her fifth studio album titled Just Whitney.

2003
She released One Wish: The Holiday Album.

2004
She went on an international tour along with other artistes such as Natalie Cole and Dionne Warwick. She also performed for the World Music Awards where she received a standing ovation.

2007
She divorced Bobby Brown. Arista released The Ultimate Collection in 2007. She also went through a rough patch, which was connected by the media, to the usage of drugs. Post 2005, she had been trying to regain her previous image. Whitney also performed in Kuala Lumpur in December 2007.

2009
In August this year, she released her new album I Look to You, which ranked No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and became the first one after The Bodyguard to grab the number one position. The album made record sales. Later this year, she appeared on Oprah Winfrey's season premiere. The same year, Houston announced that she would be touring the world.

2010
In February 2010, Houston officially commenced her world tour, titled Nothing but Love World Tour. She was nominated for two NAACP Image Awards, the same year. The single "I Look to You" won the Best Music Video award. She was honored with The BET Honors Award for Entertainer recognizing her 25 glorious years in the industry.

2012
On February 11, 2012, she passed away. She was found dead in her bathtub in a Beverly Hilton Hotel room in Beverly Hills, California. On the night of February 13, her body was flown back to New Jersey, her home state. Following her death, her album sales soared. That speaks a lot about her undying popularity among her fans all over the world.