Whitney Houston's long-awaited comeback is in full swing. And the most anticipated part of her return has been whether or not her voice is still there.
Of all the pop singers of the past 25 years, Houston has been considered "The Voice." More so than Celine Dion and Mariah Carey. In her prime, nobody could sing like Whitney.
Carey's voice has deteriorated in the past few years, surprisingly, thanks to her meltdown in 2001 and evidently not taking proper care of her voice. Dion is still a strong singer, but her style of singing is simply not heard on radio anymore.
Houston rose to fame like Dion with her powerhouse vocals and syrupy ballads, which simply don't fly on pop stations carrying the latest R&B/hip-hop hits from Beyonce, Rihanna, and Flo Rida. So far, three tracks have been leaked from Houston's upcoming album I Look to You, including the title track (written by R. Kelly) and "I Didn't Know My Own Strength" (written by Diane Warren). The latter track is typical Warren-style schmaltz: full of tired cliches about finding strength in one's self. I'm sure it's supposed to pull the heartstrings considering what Houston has been through for the past ten years, but the song is so syrupy, even Houston cannot sell it. The other problem is, sadly, Houston's voice has deteriorated - badly. Houston's creamy smooth vocals have been replaced by a roughness that suggests that the luster in her voice has completely disappeared.
The title track is a better song, and a reminder that despite his, um, extra-curricular activities, R. Kelly is a superb songwriter (he provided Michael Jackson with his last number-one hit in America, "You Are Not Alone.") But Houston's performance, while heartfelt, is hampered by her haggard voice. Despite the excellent production, nothing can distract from the fact that Houston's voice is in rough shape.
Like many, I was hoping Houston's comeback would be a triumph a la Tina Turner in the '80s, or even Carey's a few years back. I've got to give Houston credit for pulling her life together.
But there's no avoiding the fact, "The Voice" is gone.
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It's true that the "Voice", coined by Oprah, no longer has the same luster it once had. With the last 8 years not singing, drugs, bad marriage, it’s surprising that she has a voice at all. Even though the quality of her vocals can't compare to the years of the Bodyguard or even before, she still brings her signature style to the songs and you can't mistaken that it's a Whitney song. Both songs "I look to You" and "Million Dollar Bill" attracts the old and young. The ballad brings back her old fans that grew up with her and the up-tempo song helps attract a new set of people who really don't know Whitney at all. All in all it's a good enough. It’s nice to hear an actual singer on the radio these days.
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