. >> nicky thomas here live in san francisco.'re dedicating the entire show to whitney. >> he says he was simply shocked to hear. >> i heard about it this morning and i broke down in tears. i've been listening to her for so long, it's unbelievable, really. >> for radio host nicky thomas, houston's early persona was especially powerful as a young black woman. >> she was tall, thin, supermodel beautiful. >> i saw her on tv and i was proud. i was proud of my little skinny legs and my little tiny -- >> then torrez discovered her music as a writer. he raved about her first album in 1985. her surprising death, rocky marriage to bobby brown, and a battle with drugs ades her to a his of other complicated icons. >> she will be remembered like michael jackson and elvis presley are remmed as a combination of tremendous success and terrible human failures. >> whitney houston was the one to watch and listen to as singers. she was on the mines of a berkeley band called, so timeless. >> when you see a vocalist straining for notes, you start foc

. ♪ give them a sense of pride >> as part of a weekly broadcast by kvlx, the host, nicky thomas, hadans belt out whitney houston hits. >> we are celebrating the life and music of whitney houston because that exphiewks that voice will always be there. >> for many at this brunch, whitney houston's death is a shock. fillist learned from a stranger at the mall. >> she said, did you hear? whitney is dead. i'm like, no. and my heart just fluttered. >> radio host nicky thomas says houston's music was powerful but as a young black woman, houston's early image was important for a generation over other young black women. >> you can see the innuisance right -- influence right here. she was tall, thin, supermodel beautiful. >> but a rocky marriage and then divorce from bobby brown and a long stretch of drug use changed the image of the bright, beautiful diva. ben fong torrez wrote about her in 1958 for gq. he says the more recent events in her life should not overshadow her music. >> she had tremendous success. seven straight number one singles in the 80s and to continue to come back and come ba