Dionne Warwick, BeBe Winans, Darlene Love and a massive choir helped celebrate the life of gospel icon Cissy Houston during a music-filled memorial Thursday in the Duchess of Gospel’s hometown of Newark.
The ceremony at New Hope Baptist Church — where Houston was a congregant and choir leader for decades — was decorated with framed photos of Houston and her coffin was placed in front of the pulpit. The church also held daughter Whitney Houston's funeral more than a decade ago.
“She gave so much. She gave me the right to be me,†said Warwick, 83, the 91-year-old Houston’s niece.
“Cissy, I’m going to miss you,†she added, asking her aunt to greet her passed relatives. “They're all waiting for you. Your gave us your heart and soul.â€
Houston, a two-time Grammy-winning soul and gospel artist who sang with Aretha Franklin and Elvis Presley, died Oct. 7. In her honour, her oldest son, Gary, sang “Freedom†and Love sang “It Is Well with My Soul.†Her goddaughters said they would carry on her tradition of wearing purple eyeshadow proudly.
A portrait emerged from the speakers of a woman of great faith and deep love but also one who suffered fools poorly. “No one else could cut you in Jesus’ name,†Winans joked as the mourners roared. “You didn’t have to say words. She could cut you with her eyes.â€
He also told a story of her compassion: When Whitney Houston died, Winans got a call from Cissy. “I’m just calling to check on you,†she told him. â€At that moment, her strength became my strength. It was just who she was.â€
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka read a proclamation created in her honour and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy called Houston a “musical legend†who “embodied the very soul of New Jersey.â€
“While each one of us are born with a voice, only a select few of us are endowed with a voice that is powerful enough to reach into the hearts of millions and millions of listeners around the world, a voice that is powerful enough to soothe the pain of heartbreak or to carry the euphoria of falling in love,†Murphy said.
A church performer from an early age, Houston was part of a family gospel act before breaking through in popular music in the 1960s as a member of the prominent backing group The Sweet Inspirations, with Doris Troy and niece Dee Dee Warwick. The group sang backup for a variety of soul singers including Otis Redding, Lou Rawls and The Drifters. They also sang backup for Dionne Warwick.
Houston’s many credits included Franklin’s “Think†and â€(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,†Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl†and Dusty Springfield’s “Son of a Preacher Man.†The Sweet Inspirations also sang on stage with Presley.
The Sweet Inspirations had their own top 20 single with the soul-rock “Sweet Inspiration,†made in the Memphis studio where Franklin and Springfield, among others, recorded hits. They released four albums just in the late ’60s.
Houston became an in-demand session singer and recorded more than 600 songs in multiple genres throughout her career. Her vocals can be heard on tracks alongside a wide range of artists including Chaka Khan, Donny Hathaway, Jimi Hendrix, Luther Vandross, Beyoncé, Paul Simon, Roberta Flack and her own daughter.
“What she represents is so powerful that it continues to echo to this day,†said the Rev. Dr. Michael Eric Dyson. “She worked with the Irish and African Americans and Italians and Latino and Jewish brothers and sister because she believed in a patchwork and quiltwork of diversity. Unlike others who try to negate the beauty and value of all of us coming together.â€
Six pallbearers carried her coffin as the choir sang “He Shall Lead His Flock.â€
A Canadian former Olympic snowboarder who is suspected of being the leader of a transnational drug trafficking group that operated in four countries is wanted for allegedly orchestrating the murder of an “innocent†couple in Ontario in 2023, authorities say.
Trustees with an Ontario school board are responding to criticism over a $45,000 trip to Italy, where they purchased more than $100,000 worth of religious statues.
Federal cabinet ministers Filomena Tassi, Carla Qualtrough, and Dan Vandal announced Thursday they will not run for re-election. Senior government sources tell Â鶹´«Ã½ at least one other – Marie-Claude Bibeau – doesn't plan to run again, setting the stage for Justin Trudeau to shuffle his cabinet in the coming weeks.
The former members of English boy band One Direction reacted publicly to the sudden death of their bandmate, Liam Payne, for the first time on Thursday, saying in a joint statement that they're 'completely devastated.'
Israeli forces in Gaza killed top Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, a chief architect of last year’s attack on Israel that sparked the war, the military said Thursday. Troops appeared to have run across him unknowingly in a battle, only to discover afterwards that a body in the rubble was Israel’s most wanted man.
Meta has launched a new campaign to protect teens and children from social media sextortion scams. It’s designed to help teenagers and their parents easily spot online scammers, who trick young people into sending intimate photos and use financial blackmail, threatening exposure.
Shane Gross, a Canadian marine conservation photojournalist, has won the title of Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
Three tobacco giants are proposing to pay close to $25 billion to provinces and territories and more than $4 billion to some 100,000 Quebec smokers and their loved ones as part of a corporate restructuring process triggered by a long-running legal battle.
According to Google search data, the top Halloween costumes trending in Canada include everything from Taylor Swift for kids to the Joker and Harley Quinn for couples.
A handwritten book was seized from B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton's prison cell following his death earlier this year, raising hopes of uncovering new evidence in a series of unprosecuted murders.
Three tobacco giants are proposing to pay close to $25 billion to provinces and territories and more than $4 billion to some 100,000 Quebec smokers and their loved ones as part of a corporate restructuring process triggered by a long-running legal battle.
Three men convicted of helping lead and co-ordinate the border blockade at Coutts, Alta., in 2022 are to be sentenced next year.
A Canadian former Olympic snowboarder who is suspected of being the leader of a transnational drug trafficking group that operated in four countries is wanted for allegedly orchestrating the murder of an “innocent†couple in Ontario in 2023, authorities say.
Some doctors in Ottawa say the pile of paperwork they're doing every day has been steadily growing as more public service workers seek doctor's notes in order to receive accommodations to work from home.
Police are investigating a fire at a home in Dorval owned by Emile Benamor, the owner of the two Old Montreal buildings that were allegedly set on fire in the past year, killing nine.
A judge on Thursday granted a request from Texas lawmakers to delay the execution of a man who was scheduled to become the first person in the U.S. executed for a murder conviction tied to a diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome.
Yahya Sinwar masterminded an attack on Israel that shocked the world, unleashing a still-widening catastrophe with no end in sight.
The U.S. Justice Department announced criminal charges Thursday against an Indian government employee in connection with a foiled plot to kill a Sikh separatist leader living in New York City.
Florida voters and election supervisors in hurricane affected areas will have extra time and flexibility to ensure they still have the ability to vote in November elections.
More than 1 billion people in the world live in acute poverty, over half are children and nearly 40 per cent live in conflict-torn and fragile countries, according to a report released Thursday.
For months, frustrated American officials looking to end the war in Gaza have mused quietly about the one scenario they believed could loosen deadlocked ceasefire talks: the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar,
Federal cabinet ministers Filomena Tassi, Carla Qualtrough, and Dan Vandal announced Thursday they will not run for re-election. Senior government sources tell Â鶹´«Ã½ at least one other – Marie-Claude Bibeau – doesn't plan to run again, setting the stage for Justin Trudeau to shuffle his cabinet in the coming weeks.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says it's very disturbing that Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre won't get the top-level security clearance needed to view classified documents on foreign interference.
The representative plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit against Canada are urging First Nations chiefs to accept a landmark $47.8-billion child welfare reform deal.
Patients who are older, don’t speak English, and don’t have a high school education are more likely to experience harm during a hospital stay in Canada, according to new research.
Health Canada released an advisory Wednesday warning that baby walkers available online may pose a risk of injury and reminding consumers the items are already banned in Canada.
Coca-Cola has recalled more than 13,000 cases of Minute Maid Zero Sugar Lemonade because the mislabelled cartons actually contained the full-sugar version of the drink, according to a report from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Meta has launched a new campaign to protect teens and children from social media sextortion scams. It’s designed to help teenagers and their parents easily spot online scammers, who trick young people into sending intimate photos and use financial blackmail, threatening exposure.
Just weeks before the U.S. presidential election, TikTok approved advertisements that contained election disinformation even though it has a ban on political ads, according to a report published Thursday by the nonprofit Global Witness.
At the heart of the ancient city of Petra, Jordan, carved into pink sandstone cliffs, lies an elaborate monument known as the Khaznah, or the Treasury. And buried beneath that edifice, archeologists recently discovered, is a tomb with at least 12 human skeletons and artifacts that are estimated to be at least 2,000 years old.
Mitzi Gaynor, the effervescent dancer and actor who starred as Nellie Forbush in the 1958 film of 'South Pacific' and appeared in other musicals with Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly, has died. She was 93.
The former members of English boy band One Direction reacted publicly to the sudden death of their bandmate, Liam Payne, for the first time on Thursday, saying in a joint statement that they're 'completely devastated.'
Shane Gross, a Canadian marine conservation photojournalist, has won the title of Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
Meta says it has laid off some employees, including staff at WhatsApp And Instagram, to realign its resources with its “strategic goals.â€
Netflix on Thursday reported that its subscriber growth slowed dramatically during the summer, a sign the huge gains from the video-streaming service’s crackdown on freeloading viewers is tapering off.
Dozens of people rallied outside the Michigan headquarters of WK Kellogg Co. Tuesday, demanding that the company remove artificial dyes from its breakfast cereals in the U.S.
A British travel documentarian's YouTube video announcing his move to Winnipeg, Man. has gone viral, with Manitobans praising the transplant's kind words about his new Prairie home.
According to Google search data, the top Halloween costumes trending in Canada include everything from Taylor Swift for kids to the Joker and Harley Quinn for couples.
Experts weigh in on 'moon face', a condition social media users say is swelling in parts of the face caused by the stress hormone cortisol.
The Ontario Hockey League (OHL) has released a statement in response to a recent CTV W5 investigation into an alleged sexual assault in 2014.
The game against the San Jose Sharks is Hellebuyck Night – a night to recognize Connor Hellebuyck and his success last season winning both the Vezina and William M. Jennings trophies.
Â鶹´«Ã½' Rachel CrowSpreadingWings sat down with legendary Inuk hockey player Jordin Tootoo for an open conversation on his new documentary, Tootoo: The Jordin Tootoo Story. The film takes a look at achievements throughout his hockey career and his struggles with addictions.
Canada’s border guards have seized more than 1,900 stolen cars so far this year at railyards and ports, which is over a hundred more than in 2023.
The Ontario Provincial Police says the number of fatal collisions caused by distracted driving on the roads it patrols has increased by 40 per cent compared to this time last year.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled on Thursday his vision of a 'a fun, exciting future,' an 'age of abundance' full of his company’s self-driving cars without steering wheels, parking lots turned into parks and robots that will walk among the population – that he once again promised would be available within a few years.
John Cantin vividly remembers opening day for his Victoria diner. Stress levels were high, tables were full, and one of the most popular menu items couldn’t be freed from the unyielding grip of the waffle maker.
A Manitoba professor is warning the public after a book on regional mushrooms that he suspects is AI-generated was delisted from Amazon.
A B.C. judge has issued a decision in a years-long dispute between neighbours that began with a noise complaint over barking dogs, crowing roosters and quacking ducks – awarding $15,000 in damages to the plaintiffs in the case.
An Ottawa man was arrested after taking a shower in a stranger's house, Ottawa police say.
Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) Chef Paul Natrall, the man behind Indigenous food truck Mr. Bannock, is bringing cooking classes on First Nations fare to schools and offices throughout Metro Vancouver.
The Celtic Colours Festival is taking place at venues around Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia from Oct. 11 to 19.
Sometimes love is written in the stars, but for one couple, it’s written in the aurora borealis.
Canadian hip hop artist Dillan King says running 100 marathons in 100 days was not only the hardest thing he has ever done, but the 'proudest accomplishment' of his entire life.
James Taylor never expected to be walking home with a bag full of groceries he didn't buy.
A handwritten book was seized from B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton's prison cell following his death earlier this year, raising hopes of uncovering new evidence in a series of unprosecuted murders.
The most important thing to do in Metro Vancouver this weekend is to vote in the provincial election if you're eligible and not among the more than a million British Columbians who cast their ballots in advance.
Mounties in Surrey seized illicit substances and weapons and made more than a dozen arrests during a one-day crackdown on "open air drug traffickers" in the city centre last week.
A Canadian former Olympic snowboarder who is suspected of being the leader of a transnational drug trafficking group that operated in four countries is wanted for allegedly orchestrating the murder of an “innocent†couple in Ontario in 2023, authorities say.
The Ontario Hockey League (OHL) has released a statement in response to a recent CTV W5 investigation into an alleged sexual assault in 2014.
A crane collapsed into an under-construction building in Toronto's east end on Thursday afternoon, police say.
Calgary police say despite an autopsy being conducted, it's not yet known what caused the death of a young woman at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology.
RCMP are looking for witnesses in what they believe was the criminal death of a five-year-old girl at Wabamun Lake on Sunday.
A Calgary dad is pleading to have his modified 1999 Honda Civic returned after it was stolen by thieves in the community of Legacy over the Thanksgiving long weekend.
Some doctors in Ottawa say the pile of paperwork they're doing every day has been steadily growing as more public service workers seek doctor's notes in order to receive accommodations to work from home.
The Ottawa Police Service is asking the public for help in identifying three suspects involved in an alleged theft and multiple fraud incidents that happened last month in the city's west end.
Environment Canada's senior weather climatologist says Ottawa will see "more of a winter than last year," as it experiences a possible La Nina weather event this year
Double lung transplant recipient, Linda Paradis, is raising awareness of the importance of organ donation, as she now needs a kidney.
Montreal police arrested five suspects following two separate investigations involving crimes targeting a Verdun bar and a downtown restaurant.
Police are investigating a fire at a home in Dorval owned by Emile Benamor, the owner of the two Old Montreal buildings that were allegedly set on fire in the past year, killing nine.
RCMP are looking for witnesses in what they believe was the criminal death of a five-year-old girl at Wabamun Lake on Sunday.
Edmonton education support staff could be heading to the picket lines.
Edmonton police are hoping the public can help identify people involved in a shooting in the southside neighbourhood of Duggan last month.
A profane anti-Israel message on a digital billboard in Moncton, N.B., has been turned off, but the question of how it got there in the first place remains.
A new study says nearly four in 10 Canadians are worse off financially than they were a year ago.
The future of the popular Parade of Lights in Halifax is uncertain due to the sale of the media company that has sponsored it for years.
A 52-year-old man has been charged after six bison were killed in an illegal hunt on a Manitoba farm.
There are 42 stray dogs in the care of the Winnipeg Animal Services – nearly double the facility’s normal capacity.
Over the past several years, the Winnipeg has been the backdrop for dozens of Hallmark holiday movies and this year several more are being added to the growing list of feel-good, seasonal films that are Manitoba-shot.
An Amber Alert that was issued by Waskesiu Lake RCMP for a 5-day-old baby boy has been cancelled.
Saskatchewan Party Leader Scott Moe announced Thursday that if re-elected his party's 'first order of business' would be to introduce a policy that would ban 'biological males' from changing with 'biological females' in school changerooms.
STARS Air Ambulance and Craik RCMP were called to a serious collision on Highway 2 west of Chamberlain, Sask. on Thursday afternoon.
Trustees with an Ontario school board are responding to criticism over a $45,000 trip to Italy, where they purchased more than $100,000 worth of religious statues.
Two police officers took the stand Thursday to describe what they found on Erick Buhr's clothing after his grandmother, Viola Erb, was attacked.
A Canadian former Olympic snowboarder who is suspected of being the leader of a transnational drug trafficking group that operated in four countries is wanted for allegedly orchestrating the murder of an “innocent†couple in Ontario in 2023, authorities say.
An Amber Alert that was issued by Waskesiu Lake RCMP for a 5-day-old baby boy has been cancelled.
Saskatoon mayoral candidate Cary Tarasoff says it's time for the city to get its finances back on track after building a reputation of overspending and mismanaging costly projects.
The Prince Albert Police Service is investigating after unidentified human remains were found in the city.
A Canadian former Olympic snowboarder who is suspected of being the leader of a transnational drug trafficking group that operated in four countries is wanted for allegedly orchestrating the murder of an “innocent†couple in Ontario in 2023, authorities say.
A Quebec-based company that supplies hydro turbines and generators has been fined $80,000 after a millwright was critically injured at a job site last year in Iron Bridge, Ont.
An intoxicated person living on Highway 17 in Spragge, Ont., has been arrested for making repeated false 911 calls in a span of several hours Oct. 11.
OPP have closed a section of road in Middlesex County following a crash.
A Nova Scotia man crossing Canada on foot is passing through southwestern Ontario. Trevor Redmond is perhaps better known as the ‘Fellow in Yellow.’
Londoners gathered at the South London Community Centre Thursday for one of several meetings put on by the city to discuss possible ward boundary changes and provide feedback.
An Orillia man has been arrested four months after a collision on Highway 12 in Ramara Township that police say claimed the life of a senior.
On Thursday, provincial police issued a reminder to the public about the warning signs of fraud involving online transactions and financial transfers.
At 17 years old, Myles Kozinski is making a difference by creating the Orillia community fridge program.
Windsor police are investigating shots fired in a quiet east Riverside neighbourhood.
Closing arguments are complete in a careless driving trial in Chatham.
The revival and relaunch of Maple Leaf Wrestling, under the new name, Maple Leaf Pro (MLP) Wrestling, is set to take shape this weekend at St. Clair College in Windsor.
The Transportation Safety Board says a mistake by a Canadian Pacific Railway supervisor set off a crash between a freight train and a railway work vehicle in Cache Creek, B.C.
Students from the Sooke School District’s Pace Musical Theatre Academy are rehearsing for a performance that is set to benefit children half a world away.
John Cantin vividly remembers opening day for his Victoria diner. Stress levels were high, tables were full, and one of the most popular menu items couldn’t be freed from the unyielding grip of the waffle maker.
Dave Lindsey began growing giant pumpkins to bring a bit of magic to his grandkids' Halloween.
A U.S. District Court judge in Montana has sentenced a 27-year-old man from Kelowna, B.C., to 18 months in prison for using fake names to buy guns with the aim of selling them in Canada.
Nearly two years after a man was stabbed to death in downtown Kelowna, RCMP have made an arrest in the case.
With Halloween just around the corner, the Lethbridge Bulls staff have been hard at work getting Spitz Stadium ready for a different sort of fall classic.
Lethbridge post-secondary schools are trying to navigate recent changes to the cap on international students, announced by the federal government in January.
More than 600 students on the Piikani Nation will soon have a new space to learn after the federal government announced funding Thursday morning.
Surveillance cameras that are used to both deter crimes and help investigations will soon be installed throughout Sault Ste. Marie.
A Quebec-based company that supplies hydro turbines and generators has been fined $80,000 after a millwright was critically injured at a job site last year in Iron Bridge, Ont.
A physician shortage is again forcing the closure of the emergency department at the Thessalon Site of the North Shore Health Network.
A five-hour drive from St. John's, N.L., and well off the beaten path, Point Leamington seems an unlikely spot for a one-of-a-kind tourist attraction.
A Conservative MP from Newfoundland and Labrador says some small towns in his rural riding are overrun with crime, but police say they haven't received reports to that effect.
As millions in federal funding flow into a Labrador group whose claims of Inuit identity have been rejected by Indigenous organizations across Canada, a national Inuit leader worries the Liberal government is putting the rights of Indigenous Peoples at risk.
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