Cissy Houston, a two-time Grammy-winning gospel singer who was the mother of late pop titan Whitney Houston has died on Monday, 7th of October, 2024. She was 91.

“It saddens my heart to announce the passing of my beloved Queen Cissy Houston today! Please keep the Houston family in your prayers,” her daughter-in-law Pat Houston wrote Monday on Instagram.

In a statement to the Associated Press, Pat Houston said that the matriarch, who performed with Elvis Presley and Aretha Franklin, died on Monday morning in her New Jersey home while under hospice care for Alzheimer’s disease and surrounded by family.

“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,” Pat Houston said.

She 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.

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