Cissy Houston Dies Aged 91, 12 Years After Tragic Daughter Whitney Drowned in LA Bathtub

Cissy Houston, the two-time Grammy-wining gospel singer, mother of the late Whitney Houston and backup singer for acts ranging from Elvis Presley and Aretha Franklin to Jimi Hendrix, Paul Simon and Luther Vandross, died today of Alzheimer’s disease complications at her home in New Jersey. She was 91.

via: Daily Mail

Cissy's daughter-in-law Pat Houston told the Associated Press that the songstress died surrounded by her family.

'Our hearts are filled with pain and sadness. We loss the matriarch of our family,' she said in a statement announcing the 91-year-old's death.

'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.'

Seen as the matriarch of the Houston singing dynasty, Cissy struggled to come to terms with her daughter Whitney's death - which was followed three years later by her granddaughter Bobbi Kristina in an eerily similar passing when she was also found dead in her bathtub.

Following Cissy's passing, her family said in their statement that she may now 'rest in peace alongside her daughter, Whitney and granddaughter Bobbi Kristina and other cherished family members.'

Before her daughter shot to stardom, Cissy was best known for her work with the backup group Sweet Inspirations, and her powerful vocals can be heard supporting soul legends including Otis Redding and Lou Rawls.

After going solo, she won her first Grammy in 1997 for her album 'Face to Face', before winning her second for best traditional soul gospel album the following year with 'He Leadeth Me.'

Houston's last performance with Sweet Inspirations came in 1969, when her vocal band collaborated with Elvis Presley in Las Vegas.

Following further success as a group, including performing with Aretha Franklin, Houston left the band to go solo after a total of four albums together.

Springboarding off the back of her group success, Houston became an in-demand session singer and went on to record more than 600 songs across multiple genres.

Across the next decades of her career, Houston's worked with some of the biggest names in the music industry, including Jimi Hendrix, Beyonce, Luther Vandross - and later, her own daughter.

Speaking in 1998 of finding her most lucrative success in her twilight years, she told Jet Magazine: 'A lot of the things I’ve done have come late in life, and it’s like a whole new career starting up. I don’t have regrets about the way I planned and lived my life, and I am very proud of what I’ve become.'

Houston also 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.'

Cissy's start in music came at a young age, when she joined a church choir as a child in New Jersey.

She continued to be involved in her local church, the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, for more than half a century as her stock in the music world grew.

With her vocals now immortalized in hits including Van Morrison's 'Brown-Eyed Girl' and Aretha Franklin's '(You Make Me Feel Like) a Natural Woman', experts quickly paid tribute to Houston as news of her death was announced Monday.

'(She was) a significant figure not because she sold a lot of records, but because of the people she influenced who did sell a lot and because of her work as a sustainer and nurturer of the gospel music tradition,' said Robert Darden, a professor of journalism at Baylor University and the author of several books on gospel music, to the New York Times.

'Whitney Houston was trained by the best,' he continued.

'And though she had a once-in-a-lifetime voice, without the training and influence and experience of someone like Cissy, who knew everybody and who could sing in any style, she would not have achieved what she did.'

Houston's death comes 12 years after she wrote an open letter to her daughter Whitney when she drowned in a hotel bathtub at age 48.

The heart-wrenching tribute was published in the program of Whitney's funeral service and shared by TMZ at the time.

The two-time Grammy winner, who was an acclaimed gospel singer, passed away on Monday at her home in New Jersey.

The grieving parent continued, 'I never told you that when you were born the Holy Spirit told me that you would not be with me long and I thank God for the beautiful flower he allowed me to raise and cherish for 48 years.'

Using the I Wanna Dance with Somebody hitmaker's nickname, she added, 'God said it’s time Nippy; your work is done. The other day on February 11th He came for you.

'But not without warning. For two months now I have been depressed, crying, lonesome and sad not knowing why.'

She shared the haunting recollection, 'On Saturday, before I found out about your transition, my doorbell rang. I went to answer it but there was no one there. It rang again and again, no one was there so I called the concierge to tell him someone was ringing my doorbell. He checked the cameras and told me that no one was there.'

The letter went on to say, 'You promised me you were coming to spend time with me after the Grammys. I believe the spirits allowed you to come after all. How I love you Nippy and how I miss you, your beautiful smile, your special little things you used to say to me and sometimes you’d call just to say “hi Mommie, I love you so much.”'

Mourning her only daughter, Cissy concluded the message: 'I loved you so much more. I love you, I’ll miss you, Thank you for being such a wonderful daughter.

'Rest my baby girl in Peace, you’re now in the arms of Jesus. Love, Mommie.'

Cissy was surrounded by family in her final moments and had been under hospice care as she battled Alzheimer's, according to the Associated Press.