On February 11, 2012, the American singer and actress Whitney Houston was found unconscious, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, submerged in the bathtub.

On March 22, 2012, the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office reported that Houston's death was an accidental drowning caused by the "effects of atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use".

Houston is one of the world’s most awarded performers of all time and the only artist to have seven consecutive number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100.

Further tributes followed from many celebrities and Houston's death was covered prominent internationally in the media along with her memorial service, which took place on February 18.

[2][3] That same day, she made her last public performance when she joined Kelly Price on stage in Hollywood, California, and sang "Jesus Loves Me".

[4][5] Two days later, on February 11, Houston was found unconscious in Suite 434 at the Beverly Hilton, submerged in the bathtub.

[6][7] Beverly Hills paramedics arrived about 3:30 pm, found Houston unresponsive, and performed CPR.

[13][14] The performances were interspersed with hymns by the church choir and remarks by Clive Davis, Houston's record producer; Kevin Costner; Rickey Minor, her music director; Dionne Warwick, her cousin; and Ray Watson, her security guard for the last 11 years.

[16] On March 22, 2012, the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office reported that Houston's death was caused by drowning and the "effects of atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use".

[19] Toxicology results revealed additional drugs in her system: diphenhydramine (Benadryl), alprazolam (Xanax; a benzodiazepine), cannabis, and cyclobenzaprine (Flexeril).

Davis spoke about Houston's death at the evening's start: By now you have all learned of the unspeakably tragic news of our beloved Whitney's passing.

'"[23] Some celebrities opposed Davis's decision to continue with the party while a police investigation was being conducted in Houston's hotel room and her body was still in the building.

Chaka Khan, in an interview with CNN's Piers Morgan on February 13, 2012, shared that she felt the party should have been canceled, saying: "I thought that was complete insanity.

[27][28] Her ex-husband, Bobby Brown, was "in and out of crying fits" but did not cancel a scheduled performance, tearfully saying, "I love you, Whitney.

Coverage of Houston's death was ranked as the most memorable entertainment event in television history by a study from Sony Electronics and Nielsen Media Research.

At the start of the ceremony, a prayer was read by host LL Cool J after footage of Houston performing "I Will Always Love You" at the 1994 Grammys.

An image montage of Houston and important black figures who died in 2011 was followed by video footage from the 1994 ceremony.

[41] The 2012 Brit Awards on February 21 paid tribute to Houston by playing a 30-second video montage with "One Moment in Time" as the background music.

[63] In October 2021, the album was reissued on vinyl and included Houston's first posthumous hit, "Higher Love".

Since its release, it has spent more than 200 weeks on the Billboard 200, making it one of the longest-charting compilations in chart history,[64] and the longest by a female artist.

[65] Houston's posthumous live album, Her Greatest Performances (2014), was a US R&B number-one and received positive reviews by music critics.

[84] On December 16, 2022, RCA released the soundtrack album to Houston's featured film biopic, titled, I Wanna Dance with Somebody (The Movie: Whitney New, Classic and Reimagined), to every digital download platform all over the world.

[88] On October 23 and 27, 2024, a film of Houston's then-unseen performance at Durban's Kings Park Stadium from November 1994 was shown at more than 900 international theaters, then followed by a live album released on November 8, to commemorate Houston's 30th anniversary of her landmark performances at South Africa after Nelson Mandela's historic presidential election win.

[93] Lifetime released the documentary Whitney Houston & Bobbi Kristina: Didn't We Almost Have It All in 2021, which The Atlanta Journal-Constitution called "...less an exposé and more a loving tribute to these two women".

[94] On the tenth anniversary of her death, ESPN ran a 30-minute documentary of Houston's acclaimed performance of The Star Spangled Banner at Super Bowl XXV in 1991 titled Whitney's Anthem.

In April 2020, it was announced that a biopic based on Houston's life, said to be "no holds barred", titled I Wanna Dance with Somebody, would be produced, with Bohemian Rhapsody screenwriter Anthony McCarten writing the script and director Kasi Lemmons at the helm.