comes down to the individual to break the habit. we remember whitney houston this morning. she had a seriously amazing voice. we'll see you back here tomorrow morning at 7:00 a.m. for "starting point." and now we go to kyra phillips. thanks so much. well, whitney houston's remarkable voice was compared to angels, but this morning much is made of the personal demons that haunted her final years. now questions now surrounding her death, even as fellow stars immortalize her at the grammy awards. ♪ and i will always love you >> cnn's david mattingly outside of the coroner's office there in los angeles. david, cops say it will be weeks probably before cause of death is released, right? >> that's right. six to eight weeks. we're told it's pretty standard for cases like this because those labs have a lot of cases they are working on, and they have to be very careful when they go through these tests to make sure they get it right. but the answers they are looking

for are ones that the coroners are not even trying to answer right now about what caused whitney houston's death. they did tell us some very important things. they told us that there was no foul play involved. so this is not a murder case. and no signs of trauma. no physical injuries associated with her death. so we do know that she was found in the bathtub of her hotel room in los angeles. we also know that the paramedics on the scene tried to revive her with cpr but were unable to do that. so right now we are waiting for those tests to give us the all-important answers, and for the coroners to come forward with their official cause of death and tell us what happened here. > >> and, david, apparently whitney's 17-year-old daughter was also taken to the hospital hours after her mom's death. what do we know about her this morning? >> well, bobby christina brown is a teenager. she is whitney houston's only

child from the marriage she had with bobby brown. the teenager was taken to the hospital according to a source close to the family. she was released. she was just described as being overwhelmed by the sudden tragedy in her family. the loss of her mother. we are also hearing that bobby brown, who was on the road performing, became very emotional and had to leave the stage when performing in mississippi on saturday night. and he cancelled a performance on sunday. this is somebody that nobody actually really saw coming. everyone knew that whitney houston had problems in her recent past, problems with addiction. but they also saw that she was getting back on her feet. she had a movie in the works. she was preparing to perform on the stage again. so fans, family, everyone close to her was waiting for her comeback, anticipating a comeback. instead, the shock and sudden surprise of her loss. >> david mattingly out of los angeles for us this morning, thanks so much.

and of course there has been reaction all around the world, and max foster joins us live from london with that. >> picking up on your sort of angle on the demons, that really what the daily telegraph has been looking at here in the uk. the soul sweetheart destroyed by drugs, the headline. when we mourn the loss of whitney houston we don't mourn the loss of talent, because the talent was already gone. we mourn the terrible trajectory of modern fame that takes so many bright, joyous talents and destroys them, fixing them in an all consuming glare that magnifies weaknesses, exploits ego, and attacks vulnerability. the global and mail in canada, the death of a diva. despite her spectacular talent, whitney houston was a disaster in waiting. great of stature, yet brokenhearted and in the end cruelly mocked. and finally, "the sydney morning herald" in australia, one of modern pop's greatest voices falls silent, but the echoes will last forever.

so a more positive note from australia. without whitney houston, we would not have had mariah carey or beyonce. we would not have had adele, who grew up a fan of carey and houn. houston . she was the benchmark for singers around the world. >> max, thanks. in just about 10 minutes, we'll talk about gospel singer kim barrel, a longtime friend of whitney houston and whitney houston had a tremendous amount of admiration for her we'll talk to her in about 10 minutes. the carrot for greece, a fresh bailout from the european union. the stick, a new round of austerity measures. protesters not happy with the move clashed with police in the streets of athens. dozens of cops and demonstrators were injured. a bank, cafes, movie theaters, all set on fire. dozens of buildings damaged by

the rioting. and markets reacting positively to the news, and christine romans telling us what this all means. >> it's almost cruel to see the pictures in the street and to say, but the markets like it. but people don't like it. and the people in the streets don't like it because austerity means they have wage cuts, pension cuts. when you have governments slashing spending, that means governments that are going to be having less services and paying their workers a lot less. greece is a country whose government is too big, has made promises it can't keep for too long. and the people now are the ones who have to really bear the brunt of it. why are stocks likely to move up on it? because it's another tortured step forward in the resolution of a big problem for europe. remember, your 401(k) likes it because stocks want stability in europe and they want stability with basically the eu, america's biggest trading partner, and the financial systems are very closely tied. so resolving greece's problem without kind of a catastrophic default on its obligation size what everyone wants here.

>> we're paying for more gas here. >> i know. here in this country are watching gas prices rise. and i always say this is like a tax on consumer. $3.51 on average is what you're paying. could go up to maybe $4 by the summer. so sorry to have to say this. but that's up quite a bit. you know, that's up -- gosh, it was $2.67 in february of 2010. so gas prices have been rising for a lot of different reasons because of europe. prices going up there. because of what we're seeing from iran. but also because the american economy is getting a little bit better, and that means that speculators driving up the price of oil too. >> well, we have to look at the positive, i guess. >> yeah. >> even as we are paying more at the pump. thanks. washington is also crunching numbers and pointing fingers this hour. last hour, president obama delivered his 2013 budget plan to capitol hill, and it's sure to fan more ugly debate over your tax money and how the government wants to spend it. dan, even before the budget was made public, angry republicans

said it looks like a stimulus plan. christine is laughing. >> reporter: that's right. you even heard from mitt romney on the campaign trail pushing back on this budget already. but much of what we will see in this budget are things that the president has been talking about already. we heard in the state of the union address. we also heard it in that speech that the president put forth back in kansas. long-term, though, this new budget will look to call for $4 trillion in deficit reduction over the next 10 years. but in order to help the ailing economy, this administration believes that you need to invest in things like infrastructure and research and development and education. and so that's what this budget will have in it, just to break it down for you, $476 billion for infrastructure, upgrades over a six-year period. $350 billion for job creation. $30 billion to hire teachers and police officers and firefighters. we've heard the president talk

quite a bit about that in the past. and an additional $30 billion to modernize schools. and then finally, $2.2 billion for research and development for advanced manufacturing. this is something that the president had talked about for american corporations to remain competitive on the global stage. now, as part of this budget, there will also be some cuts in areas like the military. and you'll see from the president leaning on wealthier americans to carry their fair share in that budget. one thing that's new is the so-called buffett rule, where those making more than $1 million will have to pay more in taxes. the president has put out there 30% of their income. so the administration is calling this a balanced approach, but there are some republicans out there who are saying this is just more sort of a retread, a repeat, of the president's failed policies. >> dan lothian at the white house. dan, thanks so much. later this morning, president obama will address the 2013 budget. he delivers those remarks at

northern virginia community college. we'll carry that speech live right here on cnn. ok. if you're maxed out on politic, good news. no primaries or caucuses for nearly two weeks, and of course the conservative super bowl cpac that just wrapped up gives us plenty to talk about still. paul steinhauser is here. you know, mitt romney won the cpac straw poll. what does that tell us about santorum's momentum? because that's all we were talking about last week. >> listen, romney had a pretty bad week last week. so winning the straw poll at the conservative political action conference, which is the biggest conference every year for conservatives, and edging out ron paul up in maine in those caucuses, it did help romney kind of at least change the storiline a little bit. but, kyra, santorum is criticizing romney over the straw poll results. take a listen to what he told our candy crowley on "state of the union." >> someone clearly is telling you that they think mitt

romney's team at least paid for folks to go and vote for him at the straw poll. and that's what you're saying. >> that's standard procedure at all of these straw polls, that campaigns who want to win go out and recruit people and provide free tickets for them to come and vote. and there's nothing wrong with that. that's absolutely a strategy. we just don't think that's a good use of our resources. but governor romney obviously, you know, may have a different idea. >> well, the romney campaign fired back immediately. in a statement from their campaign, they said santorum has a history of making statements that aren't grounded in the truth. and as santorum said right there, kyra, it is allowed. straw polls are a test of a campaign's organization. and i guess the romney campaign had the strongest organization. but, yes, it helped a little bit. it tempered a bad week. >> it's a break from the contest and the debates so what are the candidates up to? >> never a true break, kyra. take a look at this. we put up a graphic together. here's where the campaigns are today. rick santorum is in -- sorry,

mitt romney is in arizona. that map is a little wrong there. romney is in arizona. and arizona votes on the 28th. santorum is up in washington state, and he is getting help today in washington state. why? social issues again. today, washington's governor will sign a law legalizing gay marriage. rick santorum is being helped by all of this attention on social issues. and you saw right there newt gingrich in california. some fundraising. one last thing, take a look at this. here is the latest gallup tracking poll of americans nationwide. rick santorum is on the move up. those numbers just a couple of days old. he is now up to 27%. romney is at 34%. we are really seeing a jump for santorum in the national polls. kyra? >> paul, thanks. more political news all day long on cnn. for the latest, you can go to our website cnnpolitics.com. a sick teen taken from a hospital by her own father. why cops feared for her life, next. and then more on whitney houston's life. >> whitney was a brilliant woman.

very smart. knew her craft. i embraced her as my sister and friend. >> up next, kim burrell joining us live to talk about the special relationship she shared with whitney houston. so uh this is my friend frank and his, uh, retirement plan. one golden crown. come on frank how long have we known each other? go to e-trade. they got killer tools man. they'll help you nail a retirement plan that's fierce. two golden crowns. you realize the odds of winning are the same as being mauled by a polar bear and a regular bear in the same day? frank! oh wow, you didn't win? i wanna show you something... it's my shocked face. [ gasps ] ♪ [ male announcer ] get a retirement plan that works at e-trade. i want to fix up old houses.

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checking stories across the country now, a sick teenager is taken by her father from the st. louis hospital.

well, she's been found. the two turned up in a hospital in milwaukee. she has been taken away from her dad after a kidney transplant in 2010. family services says she wasn't getting adequate care at home. whitey bulger back in court. the judge wants to know what evidence they need from prosecutors to defend him. the 82-year-old was the leader of boston's winter hill gang and an fbi informant. he was busted last june after 16 years on the run. he is accused of 19 murders. former penn state assistant football coach jerry sandusky might find out if he'll get a break on his house arrest conditions today. he wants to be able to see his grandchildren. he was charged in december with sexually abusing young boys over a 15-year period. whitney houston. she talked about how she struggled with the devil inside. and when she sang about god, you

could hear and feel her test of faith. gospel artist kim burrell was not only one of whitney's closest friends, but they were sistering, a bond that was beautifully expressed through kim's tribute at the 2010 b.e.t. honors. ♪ i believe in you and me ♪ i believe that we will be ♪ >> kim burrell joining us from los angeles. kim, as you can see, whitney was blown away by the fact that you were honoring her. tell me about the respect that you had for each other. >> wow. we loved each other deeply and richly. and purposefully. whitney was an amazing person,

and she had such a heart for music and for the world. and what you saw there that night was real. and, you know, for a minute, everyone was just not there. only just she and me. just me and ms. whit, because we shared so many private moments together. so that was just another one of our private moments in a public place. >> you even said that the two of you talked every week for the last 13 years. did she ever come to you the friend, the pastor, and say, kim, i need help, i need prayer? >> oh, my god, how often? all the time. and i enjoyed those moments mainly because she was very sincere. when she knew that she needed help, she didn't mind saying that. and sharing that with me. all times of night, as often as she wanted. and in song and in some of our performances she would put that in the lyrics, that you've been there, we've been on the phone.

and it was the truth. and whenever she would call, i was there. and i always would be. and i always will be there in some way with her family. and i just love her and miss her. >> and you were actually supposed to go to a grammy party with her. were you able to get in touch with her? was there a point where you got concerned when you didn't hear from her? >> yes. very. when i landed in l.a., i did call her because she and i were supposed to go to the clive party together. and she left a message, and it's on my phone right now. she left a message at about 2:00. and she says, kim, where are you? i need to see you. call me back. and we were playing phone tag. and when i did try to call her back, it was no more. and it doesn't feel good. it will never feel good. >> she said she needed to see you. what do you think she was saying? >> that was just her. whenever she knew i was near.

that we needed to see each other. and express our love. express our love for each other. and it's just very hard today to see all of this. it's very surreal. but i'm trying very hard to be strong for her because she wanted so much for me as an individual, she loved me dearly, and i loved her. and we just wanted to see each other and hug each other and love each other, and i don't think it was necessarily anything. but with whitney, she always would let me know when she needed me most. and it was always in that way. she always wanted to protect me as her friend from anything that she knew that i would feel from her that could be hurtful. and i don't think that she was trying to mask anything. she was in great spirits. she was singing. and she had gospel music playing.

when she left the message. so it sounded like typical happy whitney ready to see me. and i just hate we didn't get a chance to do that. i was on my way to her, and i ended up going to the hotel but it was just a little too late. >> kim, isn't that amazing that you said that you heard gospel music in the background? it's like she knew she needed god. she knew she needed that spiritual strength, she knew she needed you. why is it so difficult for so many people that struggle with addiction to hold on to that spiritual power and beat those demons? >> you know, demonic forces are strong. and they are persistent. and they are consistent. and every day, the word of the lord declares that we have a struggle but with our flesh and the spirit. there's a constant battle. but today the lord woke me up in

psalm 46 and said god is our refuge and a very present in times of trouble. and i saw god be there for her, very present in the time of trouble for her. and i must acknowledge that whitney knew to go to god. whitney knew how to pray. and i'm very confident that in her worst of times, whatever they could have been, she knew how to go to god. she would call me all times of night, all the time, so much so that she called me when she was on this last european tour, and flew out to germany to be with her and i stayed for six or seven days just to be there in prayer because she believed in the power of prayer. and it is hard. we have a constant battle with what's going on in the world, we know that we need god and we need to pray and she knew that. she would call and we would pray together. and whitney was amazing because she wouldn't just let me pray. she would say, pastor, i need to talk to god and she would. she was a wonderful spirit. she was amazing and she knew god

in the pardon of her sin and was very aware of what he could do. so i'm very confident whatever her last moments were, she knew that god could be there for her. and i have the confidence in believing without having a need to sensationalize knowing what i knew about whitney, she knew god enough to call on her. i have confidence that she is with him today because that's my compassion with her and for her. no matter what the world is saying, i, her friend, knew that she knew how to get in contact with god, and i celebrate that fact today. >> then you know what? i think this will be -- this is one of my most favorite moments does. we're going to end on a really positive note here, because you talk about her faith and when she sang to god, boy, you could see it and you could feel it. let's do this. let's take a little bit of this duet that the two of you did at last year's b.e.t. celebration of gospel. very powerful moment. let's let the viewers see this for a second.

♪ i look to you ♪ thank you, lord ♪ i look to you ♪ oh, yeah ♪ when my strength seems to be gone ♪ ♪ when the strength seems to be gone ♪ ♪ in him i can be strong >> kim, such a message here, yes? >> indeed. indeed. our moments right before that performance, she said let's go. she said this is for us. this is for you. she knew how much i loved gospel and how much she loved gospel. and she called me that night. we had dinner right after that. and once we got to our different hotels, she called me that night and she said, kim, i needed to do that. she said, and it felt good, and i thank god that we had an opportunity to do it together. and then she flew to houston to my home. and we watched it over and over again. as if we had not seen it before. and she said, look at god. listen to god.

look at god on us. and i tell you, we shared that moment in my living room, and i will never forget that. i love you, whitney. i love her so much. and i thank you so much, kyra, for giving me this opportunity to share what i knew about her to the world. she was the absolute best. i will love her forever. thank you so much. >> well, i knew the friend and the pastor would come through if i just asked the right question. so i tell you what, scott, if we can, if we could just cue up that duet again, let's take to break in honor of whitney and in honor of you and the spiritual influence you were in her life. she definitely tried, in your words, kim, so hard. thanks, kim, very much. kim burrell. >> thank you. thank you so much. >> you bet. ♪ i look to you ♪ thank you, lord ♪ thank you, lord ♪ i look to you ♪ oh, yeah, yeah ♪ when my strength seems to be gone ♪ ♪ when the strength is gone

♪ in him i can be strong ♪ i look to you

checking top stories now. possible break in the crisis in

syria. russia now saying it's open to supporting an international security agreement on syria. so far, russia and china have opposed any agreement, but the bloodshed is continuing. opposition activists say a sniper killed a civilian and three soldiers died in a failed attempt to storm the town roston. in greece, a new round of government austerity measures incites protests. dozens injured in clashes with police. several buildings are set on fire. greece will get a $172 billion bailout from the european union. back here in washington, president obama is rolling out his 2013 budget proposal today. he is calling it his blueprint for rebuilding. the proposal has a deficit of more than $1.3 trillion. we'll carry his remarks live. he is expected to speak 11:00 eastern. snow and rain is being blamed for dozens of crashes in

kansas. several stretches of highway have been closed because of the bad road conditions. rob marciano is tracking that storm for us. rob? it hasn't been a lot of snow, but it's almost like we forgot how to drive in the snow because we have had so little this entire winter, kyra. i'll show you some other spots not only across wichita, which was last night. but flint, michigan, over the weekend, pileups along i-75 from just a bit of snow there. and also across west texas. lubbock through amarillo seeing a fair amount of snow. and now starting to see that move off to the east. to give you an idea of just how little wichita saw, just a couple of inches last night. so that's where some of the traffic accidents came from. and the now is beginning to move its way off, snowing across missouri through kansas city all the way to st. louis and everywhere in between. and as far as how much of this snow is going to propagate off to the east, a fair amount. but again, there's not a lot of concentration with it. so the most we'll see out of this is maybe three, maybe up to

five inches. but it will cause enough slick roadways to where we're, you know, we'll have some issues. it is building up a decent snowpack out west, slowly, sleepily, even though we have seen very the in the way of snow in the intermountain west. this storm will bring warmer air to the northeast, which brought some cold air over the weekend. winter is still here. normally, lz granderson would be talking politics with us, but this is what he's write being today. whitney houston. her angelic voice and her powerful demons. lz joining us right after the break. i gotta get a guitar.

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>> announcer: this is the day. the day that we say to the world of identity thieves "enough." we're lifelock, and we believe you have the right to live free from the fear of identity theft. our pledge to you? as long as there are identity thieves, we'll be there. we're lifelock. and we offer the most comprehensive identity theft protection ever created. lifelock: relentlessly protecting your identity. call 1-800-lifelock or go to lifelock.com today. we are told the autopsy on whitney houston's body is finished, but it could be another two months before we actually know why she died saturday at the age of 48. but here's what we do know.

authorities in los angeles say that she was found in the bathtub at the beverly hilton. there were no signs of foul play, and no signs of trauma on her body. toxicology reports should fill in the blanks, but those results could take up to eight weeks. and the tributes keep pouring in from all over the world. >> well, whitney houston was my favorite singer. i thought she had the best natural female voice that i had ever heard. before or since. you know, so it's -- the one good thing is that she recorded so many great records. so that means she will live forever. >> lz granderson says when he hears houston sing "learning to love yourself is the greatest love of all," it isn't just prophetic, it's sad. lz, why was it so hard for her to live by those words? >> you know, i really don't know. i don't think any of us can really understand what it's like to have the sort of pressure and

expectations that she had at a very, very young age. i don't know if you saw anderson cooper's interview with adele on "60 minutes" last night prior to the grammys. but, you know, adele did a very good job of talking about the sort of pressure that she felt, and wondering if she can hit the notes and if her voice would be there for her. and it was very similar to what we saw in 2002 with diane sawyer and whitney houston talking about those expectations and how that could lead you astray. and so, yeah, learning to love yourself in the midst of all of that can be difficult. and i don't know if any of us can fully understand that. >> you know, you write that there was always room for whitney over the years. what did you mean by that? >> well, you know, there was a period there in the mid to late 80s where the music was really starting to sound manufactured. i think you had like the boy bands that were just being thrown together. and then the '90s came around, and we got grunge and hip-hop. and it was almost like a rebellion against that type of '80s sound. but we always kept whitney on the charts.

and we did so because her talent was undeniable. you know, she didn't always record, you know, some of the most profound songs. but it's because she was able to breathe life into what songs -- into those regular sounding songs. we always, always turned her up if for no other reason to just hear her magical voice. that's why there has always been room for whitney and will always be room for whitney. >> lz, from whitney, michael jackson, amy winehouse, so many others, people with fame, so much talent, why can't they defeat the devil inside them like whitney described? >> you know, that is the question we're all asking ourselves right now, i guess. you know, but if you look at the everyday person's life, right, if we just look at how addiction has affected the regular person, you know, we all are susceptible to succumbing to our own demons. and i think the lesson from all

of this is that the names that you mentioned, you know, when they died, you know, we had these great tributes and we mourned and we were very sad. but when they were going through those troubles, you know, they tend to be the butt of jokes and we mock them and had fun with what they were struggling with. and so, you know, i don't know if society -- i don't know if our culture will ever get over doing that. but perhaps we can take this moment to think about the way we talked about whitney when she said that crack is whack line and things like that. and just try and remember that at the end of the day, they're still people. and just like everyday regular people struggle with their demons, these celebrities also struggle with demons. and the means to get out of it also gives you means to get further into it. and perhaps if we analyze and look at the way that we look at these celebrities, we can do so in a much more sympathetic way than the cruel way that we sometimes do. >> cnn.com/opinion, you'll see lz's article this morning. lz, thanks so much. >> thank you. prayer and praise for the

late whitney houston last night at the los angeles grammy awards. coming up, a musical memorial. the iconic singer.

that was celebration sadness in los angeles last night at music's biggest -- as music's biggest stars gathered for the 54th grammy awards. michelle turner was there last night. and whitney houston's death weighed on the minds of so many artists there. >> oh, yeah. absolutely, kyra. she was the focus of the grammys last night in so many ways. her sudden death provided the biggest emotional moments during the show. jennifer hudson's musical

tribute was almost haunting. and ll kool j opened with a prayer to remember whitney. and before the show i was on the red carpet, and everyone, no matter their musical background, was talking about how whitney's talent left its mark on them. i spoke with one of whitney's friends, kelly price. kelly and whitney sang onstage together in what was whitney's last performance, and here's what she had to say about that party and the performance. >> whitney partied. she drank champagne. she sang and gave a performance that was unscheduled because i never expected her to take the stage. i knew she was going to be there for me. and she was. and as i addressed the audience to give acknowledgment to her being there, she decided to come up on the stage and after we embraced each other she said give me the microphone. >> now the grammy producers said that they wanted the tribute to whitney to be appropriate and not over the top. and you know what, kyra, i think it was just that.

it's hard to kind of put into words still for so many people that that legendary voice is gone. >> yeah. and i tell you, it -- even though singer adele was last night's big winner, we don't want to overshadow that of course, it was really hard to compete with the news of whitney houston and the tributes to her. >> yeah. you know, it was. and there was so much talk about whitney. the rest of the show was kind of overlooked. but you have to talk about adele, because her return to the stage was very impressive last night. listen. ♪ we could have had it all ♪ rolling in the deep >> adele took home six grammys last night. she won every single category she was nominated for, including the try biggest of the night, album, record, and song of the year. and she sounded great. this was the first time we had heard her sing in public since that throat surgery she had to

repair a polyp on her vocal cords. and during an acceptance speech, she did thank her doctors and i think we can all say thank you to those doctors as because they brought her back. >> amazing voice as well. thank you so much. and coming up, we'll have other highlights from the 54th grammy awards including this guy. a heart-warming farewell from glenn campbell. as you know, the singer is suffering from alzheimer's, but what a performance. [ wrapper coming off a vending machine waffle ] [ sizzling ]

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apple and samsung are at it again. what's the deal? >> the deal is that apple says there's a problem here. apple says that samsung's phone actually, its smartphone, is too much like its iphone. it's claiming that the galaxy nexus violates certain patents. there are reports that apple has asked a federal court to block samsung from selling the galaxy nexus phone. last year, apple sued samsung accusing it of copying the design of the iphone. while that lawsuit continues, apple maintains that samsung is copping its technical features too. one of them is a feature that lets you unlock phones by sliding an image across the screen. the stakes are high, because the sales are really neck and neck. the "wall street journal" says

apple's products accounted for 23% of global smartphone shipments. samsung is close behind with 22%. but, kyra, apple not doing too bad today. apple shares have hit $500, trading at $501 apiece. you know where apple shares were in 2009? they were at $100. nice run-up. what do you think? >> if we only knew then what we know now. >> if we only knew. >> we'd all be retiring. >> yes, we would. on the riviera. >> exactly. sippi sipping maitais. we'll take a quick break. more straight ahead. when i grow up, i'm going to go there. i want to fix up old houses. [ female announcer ] at aarp we believe you're never done growing. i want to fall in love again. [ female announcer ] discover what's next in your life. get this free travel bag when you join

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here's some stories we're working on for you today. president obama expected to talk about his budget proposal for 2013 during a visit to a community college in virginia. at 2:00, nasa will reveal the space agency's budget cuts, they are cutting funds to explore planets like mars. and at 2:30, the governor of washington will sign a same-sex marriage bill. let's check in with don lemon. hi, don. good morning to you. over my right shoulder, inside the l.a. county coroner's office, the body of superstar whitney houston lays inside of there. what happened to her? i'm dan lothian at the white house, president obama unveils his budget for 2013, a budget that includes investments, infrastructure, education and

research and gopme medevelopmen some republicans say it's more of the same. and i'm all have details one european debt deal. will this one stick? a republican government takes exception to a woman's role in combat with why? because his daughter was so cool under fire in iraq. virginia governor bob mcdonell joins us next hour. [ male announcer ] we know you don't wait until the end of the quarter to think about your money... ♪ that right now, you want to know where you are, and where you'd like to be. we know you'd like to see the same information your advisor does so you can get a deeper understanding of what's going on with your portfolio. we know all this because we asked you,

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phil versus tiger. i couldn't stop watching. >> you don't get this much this is what we want to see if you're a golf fan, tiger versus phil at pebble beach. we were thinking could tiger end his two and a half year winless drought? tiger was not on his game. a brutal final round, especially with the putter. shot a 75 and faded. more putts like this. phil was fantastic. a final round 64. his wife amy would celebrate phil's 40th career win. final round 64 from mickelson to take the title. the most clutch athlete on the planet is kobe bryant. he did it again.

that hoop with four seconds left gives the lakers the lead at the raptors. at the buzzer, toronto had a chance but not a good chance. l.a. wins it again. celtics and bulls, chicago without derek rose, he is struggling with back spasms. rondo enjoyed the day without rose. rondo, 32 points 15 assists, 10 rebounds. celtics win 95-91. a super bowl dream came true for a fan. antonio brown went to indianapolis to be a part of celebrity events, when seth palladin saw brown was in indy, he sent him a tweet. they hit it off. they spent all week hanging out. when brown forgot his shoots,

paladin gave him his credit card. he got a size 11 guccis. they were inspatible all week. whitney houston had a voice that ruled for a generation and a half. we look back on her life and career. ♪ because the greatest >> reporter: hers was a voice instantly recognized by millions worldwide. legendary recording artist whitney houston sold more than 170 million albums with hits including "saving all my love for you" and "the greatest love of all." perhaps her crowning achievement was her 1992 cover of dolly parton's "i will always love you" from the film "the

bodyguard." whitney houston was born into a musical family in newark new jersey in 1963. her incredible talent was discovered at an early age and she was signed by arista records in 1983. her first two albums brought seven consecutive number one hits, surpassing a record set by the beatles and the bee gees. she went on to become music's most awarded female of all time according to the begins in book of records, she won 16 grammys two emmys, 16 billboard music awards and was named female artist of the decade at the soul train music awards in 2000. but her career stalled address she struggled with drugs and alcohol and her stormy relationship with bobby brown became tabloid fodder. in 2009 a comeback. houston released her first

studio album in seven years. it debuted at number one on the billboard charts. >> it humbled me and kind of like said okay, i think i want do this one more time. >> reporter: but her tour was reportedly plagued with vocal difficulties. her reps blamed an upper respiratory infection. in 2011 her publicist said houston was seeking help for her addiction. the performer was set to appear in the upcoming film "sparkle" her first movie since 1996. her sudden death shocked fans and musicians across the world. >> i am absolutely devastated by this news. i am so sad for her. she was -- undoubtedly one of the greatest superstars of all time. one of the greatest voices, you know, in our lifetime we're likely ever to hear. ♪

and it is the top of the hour, we are talking about whitney houston's remarkable voice, compared to angels, but this morning much is made of the person demons that haunted her final years and new questions surround her death now even as fellow stars immortalize her at the grammy awards. ♪ and i ♪ will always love you >> wow. more on the tributes and remembrances in a moment. first don lemon just outside the coroner's office in los angeles. don, cops saying it will be weeks before a cause of death is released. what do we know? >> we always hear that, it will

be weeks. then inevitably, having done this a couple of time, sadly with michael jackson and other stars, the toxicology results come back earlier because there's such a demand for them. the assistant chief coroner to l.a. county, ed winter, spoke yesterday. the news conference was held live on cnn. he said it would be six to eight weeks. they wanted to get everything, every piece of information before they gave a cause of death. what we do know is at 3:55 on saturday pacific time, whitney houston was pronounced dead on the fourth floor of the beverly hilton hotel. what ed winter told us yesterday is that her body was found in a bathtub by someone who went into the room and found her. what he said is that they pulled her out of the bathtub and emergency medical workers tried to resuscitate her but that didn't happen. that happened about 3:43. then at 3:55 she was pronounced

dead. they're saying again, caution. they don't know exactly what caused her death. a lot of people are speculating about what could have happened. they're saying wait for the toxicology results to come in as whitney houston's body lays in this coroner's office behind me. >> don, her 18-year-old daughter also taken to the hospital just hours after her mom's death what do we know about that and about her this morning? >> it is believed she may -- i think she went to the hospital twice because on the evening of her mother's death, she went to the beverly hilton hotel and they wouldn't let her in the room. she was actually staying there with her mom, she went back to the hotel, they wouldn't let her in. she had an argument with police, it is believed she went to the hospital there because she was so x

epaspirated. then again yesterday she had to go again. bobby brown, her father, left his tour, he came here to pick her up and he is now with her and taking her back to the east coast. >> don lemon, thank you very much. last hour, i had a chance to speak with gospel artist kim burrell, first a special glimpse of their magic as they performed together and then kim on her heartbreaking loss. ♪ i look for you ♪ thank you lord ♪ i look to you >> when i landed in l.a., i did call her because she and i were supposed to go to the clive party together. and she left a message and it's on my phone right now. she left a message at about 2:00, and she says, kim, where are you? i need to see you. call me back. we were playing phone tag. when i did try to call her back, it was no more. and doesn't feel good.

>> yeah, she -- >> it will never feel good. >> she said she needed to see you. what do you think she was saying? >> that was just her. whenever she knew i was in the air, that we needed to see each other. and express our love. express our love for each other. and it's just very hard today to see all of this. it's very surreal. but i'm trying very hard to be strong for her wanted so much for me as an individual, she loved me dearly and i loved her. we just wanted to see each other, hug each other and love each other. i don't think it was necessarily anything but with whitney she always would let me know when she needed me most. and it was always in that way.

she always wanted to protect me as a friend from anything she knew that i would feel from her that could be hurtful. and i don't think she was trying to mask anything. she was in great spirit. she was singing. she had gospel music playing when she left the message. so, it sounded like typical happy whitney ready to see me. i just hate we didn't get a chance to do that. i was on my way to her. i ended up going to the hotel but it was just little too late. >> it started with a prayer and ended with an emotional song, just hours after her shocking death, the music industry came to remember and honor houston at 594th annual grammy awards. >> i just want to say to whitney up in heaven, we all love you. >> reporter: at the 54th grammy awards, the focus shifted from music to mortality.

host l.l. cool j led a prayer for whitney houston. jennifer hudson paid a tribute with a haunting tribute of houston's greatest hit "i will always love you." ♪ and i ♪ will always love you >> reporter: if this had been a normal grammys, the headline would have been the sensational return of adele. the british singer sang publicly for the first time since vocal surgery last year and left no doubt she's back. ♪ we could have had it all ♪ rolling in the deep >> reporter: as expected, she won the grammy's top honor, album of the year along with five other awards including record and song of the year. >> thank you so much. this is ridiculous. ♪ the lights are shining on me >> reporter: but on a night when

glen campbell struggling with alzheimer's gave a farewell performance and the beach boys reunited on the grammy stage, the show will be remembered for an artist who won her last grammy over a decade ago. ♪ i will always love you in the next half hour, i'll be joined by frank skii of the frank and wanda show from here in atlanta. i'll ask him about the most memorable moments he had with whitney in one of her last interviews. in syria today, explosions reported at a cemetery in homs where government forces are

stepping up brutal attacks. the man who sechbt thnt this to even the dead don't stand a chance here. >> a lot of kids and women have been injured. a few women lost their babies, pregnant women lost their babies. we just want from al assad to give us permission to move the injured babies. they are just babies. >> syrian government is dismissing the arab league's efforts to get peacekeeping forces in syria, and russia says it is open to supporting an international agreement on syria. nick peyton walsh in syria. so, nick, why the shift in position? >> reporter: russia seems to be playing for time here. yes, it did veto the last security council resolution,

today it is simply saying it's willing to entertain this idea and explore it further. other things it wants, though, before willing to see this peacekeeping force on the ground, a cease-fire and no outside intervention in the country. a bitter contradiction given that russia is setting tones on what can happen inside syria. several roadblocks ahead, not the least the syrian government coming out today calling any arab league plan a violation of its sovereignty. it doesn't seem to be a huge amount of chance here for this plan as it moves forward out of the u.n. >> nick, thanks. if you're maxed out on politics, we have good news. no primaries or caucuses for nearly two weeks, that doesn't mean the candidates are not busy. here's some of the campaign stops today. rick santorum is in tacoma, washington for a campaign rally. newt gingrich visits south elmonte, california. and then mitt romney is in mesa,

arizona for a get out the vote rally. this morning in washington, they're crunching numbers and pointing fingers. here's live pictures of the 2013 budget plan arriving at the government printing office book store right now. dan lothian is at the white house. even before the budget was made public, a lot of angry republicans said it looks like a stimulus plan. >> that's right. more spending. the white house says that this is really a balanced approach. yes, looking at reducing the deficit, $4 trillion over the next ten years, but also making investments now, and in the short-term what they believe will help to stimulate the economy in this budget the president will be seeking billions of dollars to invest in infrastructur infrastructure, education, research and development. $476 billion for infrastructure upgrades over a six-year period, that includes fixing up roads

and bridges. the president talked extensively about that in the past. $350 billion for job creation, and $30 billion to hire teachers, police officers and firefighters. much of this we heard from the president before, recently in his state of the union address and last year in kansas. but as part of this inve investment -- the other side of the balancing is that the president will focus on cuts as well. we'll see that in military cuts and asking the wealthy, the wealthiest americans to pay more. we'll see in that budget again what is the so-called buffett rule, those making more than $1 million to pay their fair share. the republicans, though, as you pointed out are pushing back on this saying it's more of the same. certainly there will be a lot of criticism on this up on capitol hill. >> dan lothian at the white house, thank you. later this morning, tell you

once again, the president addressing the 2013 budget. he will deliver those remarks in virginia, we'll carry that peach live on cnn. republican governor takes exception to rick santorum's comments about women in combat. why? because his daughter was so cool under fire in iraq. virginia governor bob mcdonell joins us next. and also protests and explosions. the same thing that caused this uproar in grease could cause stocks to soar in the u.s. today. vacations are always wasn'ta good ideaa ♪ priceline negoti - - no time. out quickly. you're miles from your destination. you'll need a hotel tonight we don't have time to bid you don't have to bid. at priceline you can choose from thousands of hotels on sale every day.

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republican candidates have had their moments. romney when he talked about the very poor. gingrich when he took talked ab the food stamp president and rick santorum when he said that -- >> i have concerns about women in combat that can be a compromising situation where people naturally may do things that may not be in the interest of the mission because of other types of emotions involved. >> that was on thursday. then on friday a proud political father hit back at cpac just before santorum spoke. >> my daughter was an army platoon leader in iraq about five years ago. and let me just -- [ applause ] let me just say, during that time over there, it was her,

army platoon leader, 25 men working with her, and i have to say, there were a couple time she's would call and say that was small arms fire she encountered, yes, i did get emotional, but she didn't. she got the job done. >> virginia governor bob mcdonell is here. governor, why was it so important for you to say that at cpac at that moment? >> i've got a great respect for all four of these candidates, even though i endorsed mitt romney and i like rick santorum a lot. i disagree with any inference he might have made that somehow women are not capable of serving in the front lines and serving in combat positions. and i base that in part on my own daughter's own experience as a platoon leader in iraq with 25 men working with her. she did a great job. was in some risky situations, yet endured and led and i'm proud of her. so, i just wanted to make sure

people didn't think that women are not capable of doing the job. i've got firsthand experience in saying that. >> so, how did santorum's comments go over with your daughter? what was the talk like over the phone or in person? >> well, i didn't talk to her about it a whole lot. i'm sure she probably has experienced some of those kinds of comments in the past, that somehow women in leadership positions in the military aren't much up to the job. she doesn't pay attention to that. i think most women in leadership positions don't. they go forward, lead, do well, serve our country in its highest tradition. i don't think it bothers them anymore. >> let me ask you about santorum's explanation after he made those comments. he said that he was talking about men's emotions, how they want to protect women. what do you think about that? >> well, listen, i accept the senator's explanation, if that's what he meant. there was at least an inference

to the contrary that women are not up to speed and aren't capable of leading. that i disagree with. that's the context of my remarks. i accept his explanation. >> is the issue of women in combat roles a divisive thing within the gop right now? >> no, this election is not about that. we might have differences with president obama about national defense and his dramatic reductions in military spending and draw-downs in the navy, which i think is wrong for homeland security. this election is about leadership, jobs, and spending. senator santorum and all the other candidates are far better than president obama on that. that's what this election is about. that will be crystallized today when he releases his budget with a $1.3 trillion deficit, more debt, more spending, more taxes. that's the issue in the election, not this one particular sub-issue on women in

combat. >> dit did come up and you chos a popular place to make a comment about that. let me play devil's advocate for a moment. you're a romney guy. so what do you say to anyone who might say, okay, he just looked for an opportunity there to slam the competition. >> well, i was certainly making it clear that to the degree the ic inference of the senator was that women are not capable, i disagree and mitt romney disagree. the point i made in the speech is that mitt romney is the guy to lead america at this time because he has the results-oriented consistent experience as governor, olympic's chair and in the private sector to create jobs and opportunity. and this president failed on the big issues that america cares about, creating jobs, creating a comprehensive energy solution

for our country, and getting us out of debt and deficits. that's where this election is all about, kyra. so, that's why i think republicans will win. again, after that budget comes out today, i'll have more to say about why this president is leading us in the wrong direction because he won't lead and won't make the tough choices. >> governor bob mcdonell, appreciate your time and we thank your daughter for her service. >> thanks, kyra. crowds of people violently protesting budget cuts in greece, banks, cafes, movie theaters set on fire. coming up, why people in other areas of the world might have reason to cheer. and an atlanta radio host who came to know whitney houston pretty well while she lived her shares some of his fondest memories. i guess i'm helping them save hundreds on car insurance. it probably also doesn't hurt that i'm a world-famous advertising icon.

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one agreement, two different reactions. the greek parliament agrees to passive spending cuts that prompted rioting in the streets of athens yesterday, but here in the u.s. investors are cheering. alison kosik has more. >> reporter: what you're seeing here happened on wall street as

you watch these riots happening in athens is optimism and a healthy dose of skepticism that greece will get its second bailout worth $170 billion this is one of those do or die situations. the greek parliament had no choice but to pass the spending cuts, but if the live in greece the spending cuts are tough to take. greece needs the bailouts to pay its bills. they have a big payment due next month, if they don't make the payment, they could get kicked out of the eu. the cuts are careerly controversial, they are cuts that any worker would hate because it's less money in peoples work s pockets. they are job cuts, pay cuts.

greece's unemployment rate is 21%, so these cuts will only make things worse. and more cuts are coming. greece still has to cut another $400 million in spending. so what you're seeing happen on the streets of athens is they're very upset because there will be more financial pain ahead and they know it. kyra? >> alilisoison kosik, thanks. george soros is one of the richest guys in the world? so why is he taking a strip off republicans for wanting to cup taxes? people with a machine. what ? customers didn't like it. so why do banks do it ? hello ?

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and is also proven to slow plaque buildup. >> announcer: crestor is not right for everyone. like people with liver disease or women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. simple blood tests will check for liver problems. tell your doctor about other medicines you're taking or if you have muscle pain or weakness. that could be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. >> is your cholesterol where your doctor wants? ask your doctor if crestor is right for you. >> announcer: if you can't afford your medication, astra zeneca may be able to help. >> the l.a. coroner on whitney houston's death. we'll listen in. >> is there a report that you ruled out drowning because there wasn't enough water in the lungs that report is not true? >> that report did not come from us? >> are you saying it's not true

or it didn't come from you? >> it's too early to say. the autopsy was yesterday and there's additional testing ongoing. >> toxicology report is just confirmation, but you have some idea usually just from the initial look at the scene and looking at her body as to what cause of death might be. i know you don't want to speculate -- >> no, that's not true. you can look at a body and not know what cause of death is. you might have a suspicion, but the person could have suffered a heart attack or an embolism or something. no matter what medications they're taking, until we run a tox and see the level and what's in the system, we're not going to speculate. >> that aside, was it drowning -- do you believe she died of drowning? >> no, we're not saying that. she was in the bathtub when she was found. >> was it full. >> i don't know, because she was removed from the bathtub by a family member, a bodyguard and fire department, when they got

there she was already out of the tub. >> did you see anything about the amount of water in the lungs? >> no, i don't have those figures yet. that's still pending. so we're not going to speculate. >> can you -- do you know -- ed, do you feel like you know what her cause of death was and cannot release it because of the security hold? or do you not know yet because of those toxicology reports? >> we do not know yet. when we find out, we will be in contact with beverly hills pd. first we'll also be in contact with the family and give them our findings. >> so it's not because of -- >> do you know how long her body was there? how long she was dead for before she was found? >> not at this time, no she was last seen -- seen within an hour by somebody at -- family or somebody at the hotel. and then she was discovered. >> will you be releasing the

body today to the family for funeral arrangements? >> did she have any clothing on her body -- >> i'm not commenting on that. >> will you be releasing the body to the family today? >> the family is making arrangemearrang aarrangements. i don't know when the family will have her body picked up. they are making arrangements. sometimes it takes a couple days. >> are they technically allowed -- >> yes, there is a security hold on the case, that doesn't restrict the family from having the body. >> let me get this straight, are you not able to give us more answers because you sincerely don't know the answers or because there's a security hold on the case and you're not allowed to give us answer. >> two, number one, there's a security hold on the case and we're not going to discuss it and there is still testing going on. >> can you describe what toxicology testing in this case might involve? >> i'm not going to comment.

it's toxicology. they'll test the blood, urine, it's a routine tox we do. okay? that's all i have to say. we probably won't have any update for anybody for a couple days. >> okay. this is ed winter, assistant chief there at the l.a. county coroner's office. bottom line, no confirmation on exactly how whitney houston died. he said there is still tests that are being done, toxicology tests, there's there's a security hold on the case. it's those two issues that winter is saying is the reason he has no new information in whitney houston's cause of death. you heard the reporters there asking about the allegations of prescription drugs. the fact that she might have drowned in the bathtub. he is not answering any of those with any type of clarification. we do know that we are going to wait for those toxicology

reports to be released and then we will know, tests still being done according to ed winter there at the coroner's office. quick break, more on whitney houston and her life and legacy next. i look at her, and i just want to give her everything. yeah, you -- you know, everything can cost upwards of...[ whistles ]

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okay. this just in to cnn. a pennsylvania judge ruled that former penn state assistant football coach, jerry sandusky can visit with his grandchildren except for three of them. this is why. sandusky's -- one of sandusky's sons is currently going through a divorce. and the soon-to-be ex-wife does

not want to grant sandusky rights to see her children. so while that's going on, three of his grandchildren will not be able to see him. however the pennsylvania judge ruling that the others can. we're following this for you. all right. political buzz, you're rapid fire look at the best political topics of the day. three questions 30 seconds on the clock. our guests today, goldie taylor, dino vadala, co-founder of the arab-american comedy festival, and the host of the radio show get right with lenny mcalister. mitt romney wins the cpac straw poll. what happened to the santorum phenomenon? >> nothing. straw polls are straw polls.

the folks doing them are sometimes paid and plied with other goodies. i think romney got himself organized and delivered people to the straw poll. i think the santorum push is still on. >> lenny? >> goldie is right. nothing. if you look at who is at cpac, a lot of republican establishment folks, put them in a room with conservative grassroot folks, let the republican establishment folks pay for it, and what do you get? an eight-point lead for romney. ames, who one? bachmann. when he then herman cain. >> dean? >> i'll be honest, this is still mitt romney's race to lose and he's losing.

he's about to lose to a guy who wears a sweater vest. you know how insane that is? romney's campaign has no life. romney has to do something bold, maybe get a tattoo with the word flip-flopping, get a mini cooper, date a kardashian, do something to get your campaign going. you lost your mojo. it's over for mitt romney if he doesn't turn it around soon. >> second question, george soros says he is worried about politics getting in the way of economic recovery and he's blaming republicans. here's what he told told fareed zachariah. >> they don't want obama to claim and see the economy recover. >> do you think he's right, lenny? >> no, i think he's left. it's obvious he's left with his

comments. he will lean left, bigger government, more spending for big government. you can't get prosperity for people who need jobs, need to move up by the way of top-down spending. we won't see it work in 2012. if we continue to take this approach, we're looking at a longer recession than what we have already been facing. >> goldie? >> nah, i don't know, lenny. at the end of the day the economy is getting in the way of politics. this economy is recovering. we were out last night. parking lots were empty a year ago. people who were out spending, enjoying themselves, they're getting back to work and understanding this economy is actually recovering. republicans, unfortunately, that's bad news for them. they needed this economy to go over a cliff to win this fall, and that's not happening. >> dean? >> kyra, are you telling me somebody is saying politics might get in the way of policy? of course it might get in the way.

this congress -- >> we're talking about sabotage, the allegations of sabotage here. >> well, there's a possibility. i don't think austerity will work. look at the uk, david cameron, a conservative, austerity a year ago, unemployment is up and gop is contracting. if somebody can tell me where austerity is working, i haven't seen it anywhere. >> sarah palin catching a few laughs at the president's expense. take a listen. >> he says that he has a jobs plan now. a jobs plan to win the future. wtf, i know. >> oh, boy. all right. so what do you call the wtf plan? goldie? >> well, you know, she would like to call it waiting to fail. i think president obama is calling it watch this fly.

so i think she's having a bit of a problem with her acronyms. >> lenny? >> i would probably call it btd, balancing through deficits, another balanced budget coming from president obama that does nothing but increase the national deficit. he doesn't have to worry about it because senate democrats don't pass budgets any way. >> oh, dean? >> i watch her and i think what could have been. as a comedian i wanted her to win so much. i have an acronym, that plan is better than anything sarah palin could ever think of. >> i miss sarah palin. sarah palin, i miss you. >> goldie, your mouth agape. >> that is hilarious, dean. >> we'll end on that note. thanks. as we head to break, we are

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some of the biggest artists reacted to the death of whitney houston last night on the music industry's biggest night, the grammy's. here's just some of the sound from the red carpet. ♪ and i will always love you >> there will be another voice like that. >> she was beautiful. had great songs. she had the whole thing. >> it's so shocking and so sad. >> there's a hole in the heart of music today. >> she was an awesome gift to the world. >> i loved her. she's my sister. and she'll always be my sister. >> you are never prepared to lose someone that young, that talented, that much of a light in this world. >> i lost a friend. i lost a dear friend. >> every little girl dreamed watching her. she was beautiful. absolutely beautiful.

>> the great whitney houston. the greatest singer i ever heard. ♪ you >> also speaking out, frank ski of the frank and wand do show here in atlanta, v103 fm. you had a chance to interview her a number of times. >> number of times. >> probably the most memorable, because it was considered her comeback album was 2009. what do you think was the most memorable part of that interview for you as you are probably thinking a lot about that interview? >> i asked her, you know, i'm so happy to have you back. you're like the diva. she began to define what a diva was. she said there are a lot of people who call themselves a diva. here's what diva means. there's not many like me. >> how did she define diva? >> regal. just all the definitions. prima donna. the top of her game.

the top of her class. a lot of people can sing go. a lot of people are in the entertainment industry but they dope have the staying power or to be able to be the diva. when you figure how many albums she sold. a lot of people sold music, but those numbers -- it will be a hard time to find somebody who will hit those numbers again. >> we can see how being a diva cans will be dangerous. >> we talked about it this morning on our show. the pressure of being a mega star, it's hard. if you think about all of these mega stars -- every time you hear them having a down time, you hear the same issues, the depression. the seclusion, the feeling like i'm not good enough anymore. it's tough. the industry makes it tougher because the bar is higher and higher and higher. maybe there's a time you will sell 15 million of this album and you can be happy selling a million of the next one. because selling a million albums is great. once you sold 15, selling a

million in this industry it's like you're falling off. >> a number of famous individuals saying to me in private, i don't want to become irrelevant. is that amazing? people who are so famous, have so much talent, it seems like they have everything before them, the one thing they're worried about is becoming irrelevant. >> they got used to living in a certain sphere. when that doesn't happen anymore they're wondering why and wondering did i do something? what's wrong with me? you know. instead of saying, you know, you've done a great job. it's like having children, right? and then the only thing you want is for them to be successful. after they're successful, you want to retire and relax. >> but you never do. >> artists always want the next big thing. there's never a satisfaction being an artist. ask any artist if they're satisfied. they're not. there's always one more hit. >> let's listen to part of your interview from 2009. >> which person called you that

really -- it made your hard tear up when they said, girl, did you it? which person in your life? >> you know, i would have to say it was my cousin dion. she came to my listening party in new york, and i wasn't expecting to see her. i didn't think she would be able to make it whtchlit. when i looked down and saw her, it filled my heart with such joy. she looked at me and said i have not seen that light in your eyes in a long time. >> even kim burrell said that when they performed together at the gospel -- >> isn't that something? i haven't seen that light in your eyes for a long time. that's sad. >> what do you think happened? you interview so many of these stars and they battle with their demons on a regular basis. they don't always admit to that. that's one thing kim burrell

said, whitney said i need help, i need guidance. you got to know her, you have been to her home. you socialized with her in atlanta when she lived here with bobby brown. why couldn't she beat it? >> i think you get to that plateau when you're at the top and it's so difficult. think about this -- imagine today if they say kyra, you can no longer go to lenox? you can no longer go to a restaurant by yourself. you can no longer do regular things regular people do. you can no longer get an ice cream cone, because everything you do takes all of this effort to make the whole world move at the same time. >> you're constantly scrutinized. >> you walk out the house, somebody says, oh, did you see her hair? did you see her shoes? did you see this? this is constant, constant. we're all human. at the end of the day we all have feelings, want to be love and accepted. when you have gotten that much love and acceptance and it cuts off for the next big thing, it's

a hard thing to come over. >> what a message. therapy with frank ski, you can tune in every morning to listen. so nice of to you stop by. >> thank you. >> you make a great point, frank. >> thank you very much. coming up, we will continue to follow the latest developments into the death of whitney houston and we will hear from r&b icon brian mcknight who knew whitney extremely well.

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a pair of designer smade their mark on the fashion industry without using advertising, instead they let celebrities do the advertising for free. alina cho has the story. >> reporter: you don't have to travel far on the red carpet to hear the name. >> one of a kind, marchesa. >> reporter: renee zellweger was the first wearing this red marchesa dress.

>> do you know what it felt like to watch her? >> it was amazing. i woke up the next day and said every newspaper with a name marchesa, oh, my gosh, i couldn't believe it. >> when zellweger wore that dress marchesa was just starting out. designers georgeina chapman and karen craig didn't have the budget for ads so they made a strategic decision to build marchesa not on advertising but on the backs of celebrities instead. >> the celebrity or the star in effect is their advertising campaign. and you know, the more women who are coming down there wearing marchesa and the more beautiful they look, the more desirable the brand becomes. >> reporter: so what does it take to get a sandra bullock in a marchesa for the oscars? >> hi, come in. >> reporter: during the award season marchesa takes out a hotel suite in beverly hills. >> we have like, you know, racks of dresses. we have beautiful shoes. >> reporter: then the real work begins. take this gown vanessa hudgens wore to the oscars in 2009. >> i took the whole dress apart and started again.

>> reporter: wow. in five days. >> we were working through the night. we got miner's lights to put on our heads so the light was good enough to work in the dark. >> reporter: then there's this. what about what they call the harvey factor? >> the harvey factor, oh, my goodness. >> reporter: chapman is married to harvey weinstein, hollywood producer of "the artist" and "the iron lady." does having a hollywood heavyweight behind your label help? >> it doesn't hurt. >> it doesn't hurt. no, of course it doesn't hurt. i think you know his relationship with actresses is a very different relationship. i don't think anybody is going to let harvey tell them how to get dressed. >> reporter: when it comes to the red carpet, actresses make game time decisions. >> they usually have about three or four choices. so i give myself some leeway to have a feeling on the day. >> reporter: because those pictures can last a lifetime and that's good business for marchesa. >> i think red carpet dressing really has made marchesa what it is today.

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