Biography:

Emily Drinkard (September 30, 1933 – October 7, 2024), known professionally as Cissy Houston, was an American soul and gospel singer. Houston was a founding member of the R&B group The Sweet Inspirations, and sang backup for artists such as Roy Hamilton, Dionne Warwick, Elvis Presley, Aretha Franklin, and Chaka Khan. Houston embarked on a solo career in 1970, and won two Grammy Awards in the Traditional Gospel Album category.

Houston was the mother of singer and actress Whitney Houston, the aunt of singers Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick, and a cousin of opera singer Leontyne Price. Houston was the grandmother of Whitney Houston’s only child, Bobbi Kristina Brown.

Early life

Born Emily Drinkard on September 30, 1933, in Newark, New Jersey,[1][2][3] to Nitcholas “Nitch” Drinkard (1895–1952) and Delia Mae Drinkard (née McCaskill) (1901–1941), she was the eighth and final child; older siblings were brothers William (1918–2003), Handsome (1925–1986), Nicky (1929–1992), and Larry (1931–2012); and sisters Lee (1920–2005), Marie (1922–2007), and Anne (1927–2003).[4] Houston’s father Nitcholas Drinkard was born to Susan Bell (called Delia) Drinkard (née Fuller), of Dutch and African-American descent.[5] His father John Drinkard, Jr., was of Native American descent.[5] The Drinkards had owned a substantial amount of farmland in Blakely, Georgia, at a time when it was unusual for black people to have large landholdings. The asset was gradually depleted as they sold small portions of land over time, to resolve the continued legal troubles of a close relative.[5]

After Houston’s three oldest siblings were born, the family relocated to New Jersey during the Great Migration.[5] Her parents emphasized the children getting educated and being involved in the church, and her father encouraged Houston and her siblings to sing.[5] In 1938, five-year-old Cissy’s mother Delia suffered a stroke and died of cerebral hemorrhage three years later.[6] Houston’s father died of stomach cancer in March 1952 when Houston was 18.[5][7] Cissy went to live with her older sister Lee and her husband Mancel Warrick.[8] The Warricks had three children: a son, Mancel Warrick Jr. and two daughters Marie Dionne Warrick and Delia Juanita (Dee Dee) Warrick.[9] Soprano Leontyne Price is a Drinkard cousin.[10][11]

Houston was raised Methodist Episcopal and said that she “found Christ” at age 14.[12]

Houston attended South Side High School.[13][14]

Credits: