Legendary Singer Whitney Houston Dead at 48 Seattle Post-Intelligencer Copyright 2012 Seattle Post-Intelligencer. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Published 09:45 p.m., Saturday, February 11, 2012 The iconic songstress, who reigned as the queen of pop until her melismatic chops and imperial image were weighed down by drug abuse, bizarre behavior and a turbulent marriage to singer Bobby Brown, passed away on Saturday at the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles. From the mid-'80s to the late '90s, Houston was one of the world's best-selling artists, leaving audiences in awe with her powerful and peerless vocals that were rooted in gospel but fully transcending classification. The daughter of gospel singer Cissy Houston and cousin of ...