terrible loss for the industry, and when clive davis heard the news, he said that when clive davis firstr she was one of the best voices ever in the industry. and he calls her one of the best vocalists of our time. that's just coming in. i'm just reading it off of my e-mail and to cnn. >> i agree with that. >> yeah, i think, don, we're going to be hearing from clive davis very shortly. he's at this party at the beverly hilton. obviously it's a tragic situation where whitney houston was found dead at the hotel. she was staying there specifically for the purpose of attending the party tonight. it's a party she always looks forward to every year. clive was telling me off camera last night it's a thing she really enjoys and he was hoping she may get to perform. it's such a devastating thing to have happened. all these great stars and the others, they're just reeling from the shock of what's happened. but they're right to go ahead with this. all the guests we've had tonight are hitting the right tone here. whatever has gone wrong with whitney houston's life, and it's been very well documented

she was in los angeles for the grammys, and to pay tribute to her mentor, clive davis. was supposed to attend an event tonight honoring clive davis at the beverly hilton. she was found dead earlier this evening in her row hotel room. they say there were no obvious signs of foul play or drug use. meanwhile, they are conducting an investigation. this is all very fresh. whitney houston dead at the age of 48. i want to be to gina kim in l.a. >> reporter: we are learning her body is still at the beverly hilton as we speak. as you can imagine, police detectives are swarming the hotel. it is also the scene of a huge gala event she was supposed to attend tonight with legendary r&b pop stars arriving at the hotel in tribute to clive davis. he is the one that puts on a pre-grammy party every year at the hotel, and whitney houston was supposed to be part of that. she was staying at her room on the fourth floor when she was discovered shortly after 3:00 this afternoon pacific time. time of death, they pronounced her dead at 3:55 p.m. they're not saying very much more than that, but

think that i was talking to clive on her last night and whitney houston has died today, you know clive davis very well. he's been a mentor to so many great stars over the years. he's got his huge pregrammy party tonight. how do you think he'll be feeling tonight, clive? >> clive will be devastated. you know, clive was really the man behind whitney. he discovered her, he worked with her closely over the years, and he is, make no mistake, the man who helped whitney turn into a superstar. i have no idea how he's feeling, because he was like a father to her. but if i know clive well, i think he's going to use this night tonight to be what should be a tribute to her. like i said, not as somebody who we're going to remember as a troubled figure, but as a legendary superstar and she deserves, you know, that on this night. but he's going to find this very, very difficult because i've never known such a close relationship, piers, between a record executive and an artist. i've seen the two of them together, the way that he would sit in the audience and watch her every move. like i said, like a proud f

already on stand by at the hilton for the clive davis event. miss houston, though, was not responsive and was pronounced dead in her hotel room at 3:55 this afternoon. the question as everybody has been talking about, the question you have been asking is whether or not drugs or alcohol played a part. beverly hills police department said as of now there's no signs of any obvious foul play, but they refused to comment on whether or not they found drugs or alcohol or pills or any sort of paraphernalia in the hotel room. they say it is still too early on in the investigation. now, whitney's body is still inside at the moment. there's a lot of talk on how they'll be able to get it out of the hotel since it is so busy, there's the party, people are surrounding it, news media is here. in the past when events like this happened in los angeles, they have been able to sneak people out through garages or back doors. this entire hotel is surrounded. people know where the entrance and exits are and now there's talk whether or not the beverly hilton will uti

it's not real. >> the timing of the grammys tomorrow night is say huge clive davis event. at would you think the mood will be. shock and saddened, but what do you think? >> i'm sure she was there to be with clive and share the joy with clive, but hopefully tomorrow night there will be a big tribute for her. >> very, very sad night. thank you so much for joining us. we appreciate it on this desperately tragic night for the music business and the world. the death of whitney houston. don? >> it's unbelievable and you are going to speak to him as soon as clive davis calls in. >> it is chaotic and clive davis had to make decisions about whether to go ahead with the event. you may make a statement and i'm not sure clive doesn't know what to do. it would be appropriate. this was the greatest star he created. no doubt about that. on the day of his event. his heart goes out and if we can, he is immersed in i'm sure what will be an extremely sad and moving occasion. >> for anyone knows the man you are talking with, he knows how it is to find someone and know someone with that extraor

but at this clive davis event there was a lot of speculation that with the late word coming down that we know mr. davis, the music mogul extremely close to whitney houston. responsible really for finding her. tony bennett is here. jimmy january. john boyd. tom hanks just arrived. herbie hancock. darren christ. all of the celebrities are walking the red carpet. we have producers on the red carpet. it appears the event is still on. an event by the way that is supposed to start in just about an hour and a half at 9:00 local time at midnight eastern. and so we are trying to effort some of the video of the red carpet. we are trying to jam our microphones up there to try and get reaction in person because we have been talking a lot about the reaction that is coming in via twitter and facebook and all of the other social media but i have got to say the real super stars of the music industry are in los angeles for the grammies tomorrow and a lot of them attend this it party at this hotel. an annual event and obviously a lot of the people here are shaken and they have an awful lot to say and a

it's not real. >> the timing of the grammys tomorrow night is say huge clive davis event. at would you think the mood will be. shock and saddened, but what do you think? >> i'm sure she was there to be with clive and share the joy with clive, but hopefully tomorrow night there will be a big tribute for her. >> very, very sad night. thank you so much for joining us. we appreciate it on this desperately tragic night for the music business and the world. the death of whitney houston. don? >> it's unbelievable and you are going to speak to him as soon as clive davis calls in. >> it is chaotic and clive davis had to make decisions about whether to go ahead with the event. you may make a statement and i'm not sure clive doesn't know what to do. it would be appropriate. this was the greatest star he created. no doubt about that. on the day of his event. his heart goes out and if we can, he is immersed in i'm sure what will be an extremely sad and moving occasion. >> for anyone knows the man you are talking with, he knows how it is to find someone and know someone with that extraor

but tonight inside the clive davis event the mood is somber. obviously i have a reporter inside there who says that the only thing that any celebrity and any attendee tonight is talking about is whitney. just kind of this somber feeling of shock. people really don't know what to do. it was obviously unexpected. and just, you know, people are finding it very difficult to come to terms with this new reality. >> harris: you mentioned you have a writer inside the clive davis party right now? >> yes. >> harris: and are you able to text back and forth? >> yes. >> harris: who is there? what is happening? >> my reporter inside is talking about the somber mood. britney spears is is there. lots and lots of people there. it is just a very odd atmosphere inside there as far as, you know, the celebrities that are there and what they are doing. it is really not like -- we have always covered the clive davis party. staple in the pregrammy party coverage. the night before it always happens. one of the most star studded events on the gramly calendar but tonight

but tonight inside the clive davis event the mood is somber. obviously i have a reporter inside there who says that the only thing that any celebrity and any attendee tonight is talking about is whitney. just kind of this somber feeling of shock. people really don't know what to do. it was obviously unexpected. and just, you know, people are finding it very difficult to come to terms with this new reality. >> harris: you mentioned you have a writer inside the clive davis party right now? >> yes. >> harris: and are you able to text back and forth? >> yes. >> harris: who is there? what is happening? >> my reporter inside is talking about the somber mood. britney spears is is there. lots and lots of people there. it is just a very odd atmosphere inside there as far as, you know, the celebrities that are there and what they are doing. it is really not like -- we have always covered the clive davis party. staple in the pregrammy party coverage. the night before it always happens. one of the most star studded events on the gramly calendar but tonight

that is what clive davis' people call it.grammy party and no doubt a different tone and the gathering set to begin shortly. i will hand it back over to the viewers for a second. you guys that are driving the things that will be said your thoughts and feelings and love. steven ranting writing on twitter. only whitney houston sent chills up my spine with her voice. god bless you, whitney. you made moy home state proud. and gin ayou said you don't know what happened and be responsible and her death is news enough. a lot of that on twitter tonight. be careful with how you handle it. the importance of the death investigation warrants that reportedly is sought at this point . and more about such a tragec loss, she had a powerful singing loss and she will be greatly missed. and if you want to get your voice heard on fox news channel, we are happy to include it as we report the death of whitney houston. our coverage continues . we are getting details of how long the crime investigators have been at the scene. we'll talk to somebody o

it's not real. >> obviously the timing of the grammys form night, and the p pregrammy party clive davis was hosting. >> i'm sure she was there tonight to share the joy with clive. but hopefully tomorrow night there will be a big tribute for her. >> yeah. very, very sad night, tommy. thank you very much indeed for joining us this evening. we greatly appreciate it on this desperately tragic night, the death of whitney houston at 48 years old. i'm going back to don lemon in atlanta who will bring us up to date. >> it's unbelievable. and we are waiting for clive davis, you're going to speak to him as soon as he calls in. >> we're hoping to. it is chaotic down there. clive davis has had to make decisions about whether to go ahead with this event. he may make a statement. i'm sure he doesn't know what to do that would be appropriate. this whereas the greatest star that he ever created, no doubt about that. i think the fact that she died today on the day of his event, my heart goes out to him. if we can't talk to him, it will be because he's immersed in what will be an extremely sad and moving

however, clive davis said that whitney would have wanted this party to go on, everybody was mingling tage. usually it's a crowd that takes a little while to calm down, but as soon as clive took the stage you could hear a pin drop. everyone wanted to hear what he was going to say. and here's how he started his remarks. >> i do have a very heavy heart, and i am personally devastated by the loss of someone who has meant so much to me for so many years. whitney was so full of life. >> clive went on to say all the wonderful things that he knew about whitney when she was growing up. he ended it with a moment of silence. and after that moment of silence was over, he said, now let's hear some music. and that sort of, jenna, gave everyone a license to have a good time. we had artists like alicia keys taking to the stage, celebrating the life of whitney houston saying that she was so glad that she had met her because clive davis had given her and whitney houston their start. and also, a tribute to diana ross. everyone mentioned whitney houston during their performance. jenna? >> to say she will

what a sad night. >> and tonight is clive davis''s huge grammy party which she has every year on the eve of the grammys and i'm going with my wife shawne. clive was so close to her, discovered her, literally helped make her a star. last year whitney was his surprise guest and she sang at this event tonight. it's going to be a strange occasion. i liked her a lot. i liked her as a person. i thought she was a gamer, i thought she was an incredible talent. i don't like to presume what she died of but i'm sure everybody's guessing that. >> and, you know, larry, i remember when she did that and she came back and she had had latest album that came out. i guess it's just over a year ago. she went to australia and did the european tour and then went to australia as well on the last tour and she was singing so much and she had gotten hoarse and she really could not pull it off. and that video, you know, went viral like what is going on with whitney houston. but many people said, hey, i kind of expected this to happen. we didn't want it to happen. but can you talk about some of the trials and tr

honored that i got a chance to be a part of her life, to help create that world of success with clive davis and clive has been unbelievable with whitney and myself, and just having that vision. and we've already had a very solid relationship where we would say hi and really care about each other. i feel that she genuinely cared about me and my family. like i said, she called and phoned me when michael passed. she was very much concerned about how i was doing. so i was very happy that she had phoned during the time. >> jermaine, if i could ask you, how good a singer technically, you're a great singer yourself, and you are the brother of one of the greatest singers in history. how good to you think from a technical point of view, whitney's voice was. to a lay man like me, it was unbelievable. but tell me about the voice. >> she was unbelievable. she was an artist who had a lot of influence from her mom. aretha franklin, a lot of the greats that were out there before her. but just being in the studio with her, i'll never forget when we were singing "if we say minds are beautiful" and standing

that clive davis' party is tonight and, of course, earlier we had a statement from clive davis and, ofe, tommy mattola the former president of so sony music talking about how he met her at 6 and she blue him away with the strength and poured concreter in that voice. >> absolutely. >> judge jeanine: hopefully as you get more information this evening we will be talking to you. thank you so much. >> all right, judge. >> judge jeanine: all right, adam. you know, adam is right. we don't know what happened but you she was in a bath tub. pat. >> he makes a great point. what the lieutenant said was very clear. very specific that at this time at 3:43 p.m. there was no obvious signs of crim national intent. that is what he state. >> judge jeanine: no obvious signs of crim national intent. let's parse that one out. >> does that means as it relates to her doing something to herself or someone else doing something to her? what does that mean? >> without knowing jenkins it is difficult to know what his subjective call is. i think what he is referring to in terms of no obvious signs of criminal inten

meanwhile, the party you referred to, the clive davis pregrammy party.e. we hear music emanated from the beverly hilton, and michelle turner has returned from the red carpet, stars going into the party. it's surreal, it's odd that this party is happening. at the very hotel where whitney houston was found dead. >> right, and that's kind of the sentiment that was on the red carpet tonight. most of the celebrities i spoke with going to the party said this was very odd. it's a very solemn red carpet. all of the talk was about whitney houston. no other talk, period. and most people said they're just having trouble digesting it all, jane. one of the things when i spoke with gladys knight, she was so broken up. a tribute to her. this happened spontaneously and happening through the night. the party you refer to, the clyde davis pregrammy party is happening a stone's throw there. we hear music from the beverly hilton and michelle turner has just returned from the red >> that's what the fans say. i don't know if you can hear them, but they continue to sing as we

but there will never be another voice like that. >> when i first heard whitney houston, i call up clive davisolumbia, and i said clive, that's one of the greatest singers i ever heard. >> i just remember when we were doing "the bodyguard" that she would work all day filming, tired from that and come into the studio, and just rip her coat off and go up to the mike, like i said, like a race horse, and she is the definitive girl. i love great voices, and hers was the greatest of all. >> you know that voice anywhere. i gri up listening to "the bodyguard" soundtrack. that was like my jam. >> it was amazing to see someone like that have all the star qualities and be able to sing like that because all people with star quality are not necessarily excellent. we see it. she was excellent and a star. >> the memories that i have of her is sitting with her in atlanta talking about the music that she wanted to do, talking about the songs that she wanted me to write for her. she said i just need people to know that i'm happy. i'm not bitter. i'm not depressed. i'm happy. i got my kids, my music, and my god.

" at the age of 21. ♪ everything that i see she had a powerful man behind her, producing legend clive daviselationship with whitney. she trusted him probably more than she trusted anybody on the planet. >> reporter: over the next seven years she'd become the only artist to chart seven consecutive number one billboard 100 hits. ♪ the greatest love of all ♪ i wanna dance with somebody ♪ how will i know if he really loves me ♪ >> reporter: and then at 29, a movie star. as the beautiful diva pursued by a stalker in the 1992 movie "the bodyguard." ♪ and i will always love you the soundtrack shot to number one. and stayed there 20 weeks. that same year, she married bad boy singer bobby brown. he already had three kids from two relationships. and many thought he was an odd choice for pop's golden girl. a year into the marriage, they sat down with barbara walters. >> think this marriage is going to last and last? >> oh, yeah. >> as long as we're here. >> till the end of time. >> reporter: or so she hoped. despite the public success, there were private struggles. throughout the '90s, there were pers

and i can't imagine attempting to go the clive davis. we lost a pioneer and icon and whatever detractors she may have had, you can't deny the indelible mark she left. >> taku, percussionist and taking a moment to talk with us tonight . thank you, taku, thank you very much. >> thank you. >> as we go to a commercial break. wd wilson. i met whitney and enthat you willed with her beauty and talent. rest in peace beautiful lady. stay with us. b can be tricky. sometimes what you need is extra working capital or leasing options. and as one of the top-ranked small business lenders, regions can make the journey easy. see? so let's talk. my feet and exactly where i needed more support. i had tired, achy feet. until i got my number. my dr. scholl's custom fit orthotics number. now i'm a believer. you'll be a believer, too. learn where to find your number at drscholls.com. they clip grocery coupons, save spare change for laundry, and do their federal taxes for free with irs free file. everyone can free file. choose a brand-name software right for yo

but herbie just mentioned, john, clive davis, legendary in the music business.lbum came out, i sat down with him and talked to him for a long time, and he was always, i think, you know, somebody who always believed the best for whitney, and he did believe that this was going to help launch a comeback. and people who saw her on the set of her movie just a few months ago thought she looked great, she sounded great, her attitude was very positive, and yet, you know, given her husband with drugs and given her tumultuous marriage, you know, i think we were sad, but i don't think anyone was tremendously shocked. such a tragedy. >> well, but you're always surprised because her music had so much strength in it. her music gave -- songs like "the greatest love of all," it was all about pulling yourself up, making things better, finding a better way. you always hoped that the same thing would happen for her. i mean, there was a long decline, but everybody wanted her to pull out. there was none of the gloating that you get with some, you know, stars. everybody wanted her to

>> there was this big event that clive davis was hosting.k about canceling that or at a time like this, do you need to be together so that you can try to get through the shock? >> my understanding is there wasn't really enough time. people were already arriving, people were already there. there wasn't enough time for them to actually stop it. as puffy said last night, this is a party. whitney would have loved this. that's who she was. she enjoyed having a good time and laughing and being with people. so in many ways it was a fitting tribute for that to continue, for the party to go on. >> alicia, what do you think whitney houston's lasting legacy will be? >> i think err lasting legacy will be her voice. we covered that party, if you want to call it that last night. clive davis who introduced her at that event 20-something years ago said whitney would want the party, the show to go on. she had all these trials and trib layings, you saw her downfall. you cannot deny that beautiful voice she had before the drugs ravaged it. >> you cannot deny i

honored that i got a chance to be a part of her life, to help create that world of success with clive davis and clive has been unbelievable with whitney and myself, and just having that vision. and we've already had a very solid relationship where we would say high a and really car about each other. i feel that she genuinely cared about me and my family. like i said, she called and phoned me when michael passed. she was very much concerned about how i was doing. so i was very happy that she had phoned during the time. >> jermaine, if i could ask you, how good a singer technically, you're a great singer yourself, and you are the brother of one of the greatest singers in history. how good to you think from a technical point of view, whitney's voice was. to a lehmaa lay man like me, it unbelievable. but tell me about the voice. >> she was unbelievable. she was an artist who had a lot of influence from her mom. aretha franklin, a lot of the greats that were out there before her. but just being in the studio with her, i'll never forget when we were singing "if we say minds are beautiful" and sta

i interviewed her when she did the rounds for her last album, and she was sitting with clive davis, andou know, we talked about that she was sort of on an island, you know, just sort of luxuriating on her own and clive was like you have to come back. sitting on an island sounds a lot more interesting than all this. why did you come back? she basically talked about the love of the game, that she loves to sing. she loves to make songs, she loves to sing for people, and show off her immense talent, and she couldn't stay away. >> right, and how did you find her as a person when you interviewed her as she was making her comeback? was she confident? did she have trepidation? >> she always had confidence, definitely a chip on her shoulder. she knew she was great. you didn't have to tell her she was great. there was an elegance to her and a loveliness to her, but i think could you also see another side through the sequin dress with the heels and whitney was not one to play with and if you disrespected her, you know, you would get pushed back into your place very quickly, i mean in aware of herd

hilton hotel, she was apparently in town to participate in a musical tribute to a music executive, clive davis, her mentor and the man who discovered her and was responsible for her skyrocketing career in the '80s and '90s and when the news hit today around i would say about an hour and a half, two hours ago here in the newsroom, everyone just exploded. this is certainly a very big surprise. i don't think anybody here in los angeles, even those in the music industry had any idea that this was coming. this is definitely a shock, and as far as what may be the cause of her death, who may have found her, what time all of this happened, we're still trying to get all of those confirmations. we did contact the l.a. county coroner's office who said as far as he's concerned he's not able to release any information so far so he's unable to give us any additional details at this time. it appears to be from multiple sources this is indeed the case and that everyone here in los angeles is surprised by the whole thing, paige. >> gina kim thank you so much. courtney hazlett, msnbc entertainment correspondent

inside the same hotel as her beloved mentor, clive davis, holding his pre-grammy bash.sic's biggest stars. >> it was this same party back in 1983, that davis introduced whitney to the music industry. she became an instant star. so many mega mitts through the '80s and '90s. at last night's party was expected to honor the six-time grammy winner. instead it became a memorable. everyone from tony bennett to alicia keys paying tribute. we'll celebrate her career throughout the program. right to abc's cecilia vega who joins us from the beverly hills hotel in los angeles. >> reporter: yeah, good morning, george. it happened here at 3:43 yesterday afternoon when a member of houston's entourage located her body inside this hotel. so far, police and the coroner are refusing to offer details on what may have caused her tragic death. exactly what happened inside the iconic beverly hilton remains a mystery. paramedics raced to the fourth floor and found a lifeless whitney houston inside her hotel bathtub. they tried in vain to resuscitate her with cpr. >> at 3:55 p.m., this afternoo

that party did go on and clive davis took the stage at that party.sten. >> whitney would have wanted the music to go on, and her family asked that we carry on. >> among those at the hotel that night was a reporter for "newsweek," who has interviewed whitney houston in the past, and she joins me this morning. alison samuels of "newsweek" and "the daily beast." alice you, you were at the beverly hilton on saturday. obviously, this is a huge weekend there for the clive davis pre grammy party, a lot of celebrities staying there. what is the scene that you recall the best, the atmosphere as that day was unfolding? >> i guess the atmosphere that i remember the most is just sort of the mayhem of getting ready for clive davis's party and the fact that so many people didn't realize that whitney had died. many people even in the hotel had no clue until the crime van came probably around 4:30. then people began to sort of question and stare out the window and fans started to sort of gather outside of the hotel. but there was a good period of time where people w

for example, the clive davis party, also the artist neo had an event, it's his midnight brunch pregrammy party and i'm told by a music end sider there wasn't a dry eye in the house. everyone was so extremely emotional. ray j a close friend of whitney houston, they were reportedly romantically linked several years ago, they had remained close friends, they were told he was going to pick her up from her hotel in beverly hills to take her to her favorite party of the year, the clive davis party. he was extremely emotional and told by my source he spent the entire night with his head in his sister's arms, in his sister's lap we're talking about brandy. just so devastated, so broken up, as are many people in the music industry and beyond. people pay tributes to whitney houston, reflected on personal experiences with her and came together to not only console each other but to remember this iconic super star. people are still so in shock and we'll be heading down shortly to the staples center where the grammys will take place and this is something that's undoubtedly going to continue as the nig

whitney houston was supposed to be a great of honor at clive davis' party last night.celebrities expressed their sadness and shock. throughout the night, most of music royalty was at that huge pre-grammy party, sharing their thoughts and memories about the music legend. >> music heals. things go on. but without a doubt, we have lost a magnificent talent. >> i'm sad. we have a lost a great, great, great voice. >> i loved her very much. >> reporter: inside the party, music heavyweight paid tribute with words and songs. >> whitney houston simply put had the greatest voice in the world. >> talk about whitney. yeah. i would be like -- ♪ i wanna dance with somebody >> on twitter, thousands posted messages, many from music industry royalty. from mariah carey who collaborated with whitney on their duet "it believe." heart broken and in tears, over the shocking death of my friend. she will never be forgotten as one of the greatest voices to ever grace the earth. to barbra streisand -- she had everything -- beauty, a magnificent voice. how sad her gifts could not bring her the s

clive davis.ho made stars out of all these people and here with one of the biggest stars, oscar and grammy winner, jennifer hudson. thank you to you both. great honor to have you in my studio. jennifer, you are a fantastic story. you know why i love your story? simon cowell didn't spot your talent. i remind you of this every time. if you come on "america's got talent," i made sure you won. >> thank you for that. how do you feel, clive, you swooped on this amazing talent after you saw dream girls. did you see her on "american idol" and did you pick up on it then? >> i did, but i agreed to record the winner and the runner up. i saw jennifer's talent and regretfully she didn't reach the finals. i saw the screen test. she is saying i am changing. the great songs and saw her acting ability. >> you are living, walking proof that these shows which often get derighted by critics can produce world class stars, can't they? >> i think so. reality shows are a good platform for to you display your talent and t