Pop diva Whitney Houston was expected to be buried Sunday after an emotional farewell during which Hollywood stars, music greats and loved ones praised the “sweet miracle” of her talent. She will be buried in suburban Westfield, New Jersey, next to her father, John Russell Houston, who died in 2003. On Saturday, a gold-coloured hearse delivered Houston’s body to Newark’s New Hope Baptist Church, where she sang as a child. Actor Kevin Costner delivered an emotional tribute to the singer, whose death at the age of 48 prompted sadness and respect from fans and contemporaries worldwide.
“I urge us all inside and outside, across the nation and around the world, to dry our tears, suspend our sorrow and perhaps our anger just long enough, just long enough to remember the sweet miracle of Whitney,” Costner said.
The four-hour service ended with an audio recording of I Will Always Love You, regarded by many as Houston’s signature track and the theme of The Bodyguard, the 1992 box office smash hit in which she co-starred with Costner. While Houston’s musical success took her away from New Jersey across the world, countless friends and relatives told of how the singer never lost sight of Newark and the community that shaped her. Clive Davis, the legendary producer who became Houston’s mentor, said he was spellbound when he met her in 1983. “You wait for a voice like that for a lifetime. You wait for a face like that, a smile like that, a presence like that, for a lifetime. And when one person embodies it all, well, it takes your breath away,” Davis said.
“Cissy, your daughter stepped forward and shattered me with her version of The Greatest Love Of All”, Davis said, looking at Houston’s mother, a gospel singer and one-time backing artist for soul queen Aretha Franklin. And Costner, in a frank recollection of his time spent with Houston, told how the singer almost missed out on her role in The Bodyguard, on account of her skin colour and lack of acting experience.
“We could also think about another singer, was a suggestion. Maybe somebody white. Nobody ever said it out loud, but it was a fair question,” Costner recalled of questions posed to him at the time by the movie’s producers. “I told everyone that I had taken notice that Whitney was black. The only problem was I thought she was perfect for what we were trying to do,” he said, crediting Warner Brothers for agreeing. The movie became a blockbuster. “You made the picture what it was,” said Costner. “A lot of guys could have played my part, but I believe you were the only one who could have played Rachel Marron at that time. You were as beautiful as a woman could be.”
Newark Mayor Cory Booker set the tone for the service, which opened to joyous gospel singing from the New Hope Mass Choir. “We are here to mourn our loss, but to celebrate her life. God is in heaven, and with him is one of our angels, Whitney Houston,” Booker said. Streets near the red-brick church, which has been adorned with floral tributes, candles, balloons and condolence cards in recent days, were sealed off as the memorial service was by invitation only. Houston’s ex-husband, soul performer Bobby Brown, with whom she had a daughter during a turbulent 15-year marriage, said he was asked to leave the service. Brown later said that he and his children “were seated by security and then subsequently asked to move on three separate occasions,” and that he was prevented from seeing the daughter he had with Houston.