Born in Newark, New Jersey, Emily Drinkard, professionally known as Cissy Houston began singing with her siblings in the family gospel group, The Drinkard Singers. She began her career in the early 1960s, and was lead singer with The Sweet Inspirations from 1967 to 1970. She became an in-demand session singer and recorded more than 600 songs in multiple genres for artists such as Aretha Franklin, Van Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, Dusty Springfield and Elvis Presley. In 1978 she held an uncredited role as a Wiz Singer in The Wiz, and in 1986 she appeared alongside her daughter Whitney in the music video Whitney Houston: Greatest Love of All.
Cissy Houston died of Alzheimer's disease at the age of 91.
