Jennifer Hudson, Usher & More Pay Tribute To Whitney Houston At Grammy Special

BHR HollyWood Reports Whitney Houston's life was celebrated last night at a special Grammy ceremony in Los Angeles.

Celebrity friends attended the moving ceremony and paid tribute to the legendary diva. The We Will Always Love You: A Grammy Salute to Whitney Houston special, was filmed last night, with Halle Berry making a tearful introduction and praising the “unforgettable” performer:
"She inspired a generation of little girls and women to believe in their own dream and to know what they had within themselves the greatest gift of all. I was one of those girls who then became a woman who never, ever, ever, stopped loving Whitney Houston", Berry said.
Family and close friends of Houston attended the ceremony; daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown was accompanied by boyfriend Nick Gordon and sister-in-law Pat Houston.
Absent was Houston's mother, Cissy, and her brother Gary. Record label executive and life-long friend, Clive Davis, who discovered the singer, was sat in the front row alongside the family members.

Whitney Houston

The night before the 2012 Grammy award ceremony in February, Whitney's body was found in a hotel room in Beverly Hills.

The singer was 48 at the time of her death and died from accidental drowning, complicated by drug use and heart disease.

A tribute was quickly assembled and Jennifer Hudson sang a poignant and stirring rendition of Houston’s most famed song, ‘I Will Always Love You’. Hudson dressed in homage to the 80s fashion style of Houston, with big hair and glittery blazer.

She sang upbeat numbers, with a medley of ‘I’m Every Woman’, ‘How Will I Know’ and ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’. Usher sang ‘I Believe In You And Me’ and gospel singers Cece Winans and Yolanda Adams delivered a rousing performance of ‘Count On Me,’ which had Houston’s family and friends moved to tears.

As well as tribute performances, presenters shared their memories of the late super-star with Britney Spears stating that her own version of Houston’s ‘I Have Nothing’ is what helped her gain her record deal and started her career.

Exclusive interviews were also screened, with Houston speaking out on topics such as fame, philosophy and religion. Celine Dion, who was meant to perform but could not attend, recorded her version of ‘The Greatest Love Of All’ in Canada, which will be screened during the televised special.

The one-hour ceremony will air on CBS on November 16. Watch Jennifer Hudson sing 'I Will Always Love You' from the February 2012 Grammy Awards.

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