her life based on her voice. she has a remarkable voice, she could do anything, sing with excitement, beautiful and seductive. she had the whole thing. a high level of emotional contact. she was her voice, without that, she didn't have much of a life. >> what we heard, the final performance she gave thursday night, singing a few lines from a gospel song, when you heard that, could her voice have come back? >> i'm very confident after working with her a couple years, four or five years, her voice would have come back. i got it 75% by the time she did her record. that's not working with her on a daily basis. if i had been with her three or four months in a row, i think i could have gotten 95% of her voice back. >> what was your impression with the folks she surrounded herself with? what was your vantage point? >> she was a very powerful person, very charismatic, confident. she was an alpha female. she was more powerful than the people around her. difficult to control her. she's smart, beautiful and brilliantly gift

[voice 7] just tell the truth [voice 8] we love him. [voice 9] but we're not ready. that makes sense. i want to wait. new gold bond anti-itch lotion gives fast, lasting relief. got an itch? gold bond lotion. the quick fix for almost every itch. try capzasin-hp. it penetrates deep to block pain signals for hours of relief. capzasin-hp. take the pain out of arthritis. >>> that wraps it up for this episode of "our world with black enterprise." be sure to visit us on the web at blackenterprise.com/ourworld. and follow us on facebook or me on twitter. thanks for watching. i love you i love you too. c'mon, let's do it then. all brain cells to battle stations. inner conflict. [voice 1] should we, shouldn't we, should we, shouldn't we? [heart] we love each other. why not? [voice 2] girl, we are only 15! [voice 3] we could get pregnant! [voice 4] half of teen pregnancies occur within six months of first sexual intercourse. [heart] but it feels right! [voice 5] one word: aids! [voice 6] not to mention syphilis, gonorrhea... [heart] we don't want to lose him! [voice 7] just tel

and she had that voice.hat voice that could just turn a story, a melody, into just magical notes. i think about it all the time in terms of watching her just -- there was no end to what range she could hit. and of course, you think, okay, she can't get any better than that. and then she comes with another lick that's even more amazing than the last lick. i always think about myself. i'm a storyteller, so when you get someone who is that gifted with a voice, it almost -- it's almost angelic at some point. for her, it was just her signature, her signature was that beautiful voice she had. >> lionel, piers morgan is standing by in los angeles. piers, it's odd to see as we saw the closeups, i don't know if you could see the closeups of the beverly hilton, but you could see the red carpet inside. but piers, i'm sure you have a couple questions for lionel. >> there are swirling reports that the clive davis party may not be happening. they're still trying to decide what to do. he was the great mentor to whitney hou

now, that's a voice! your name? one second. [ laughs ] oh, sorry. [ laughs ] i'm chris mann. chris, that was pretty phenomenal. and you know what? i just love seeing the statement "the voice" behind your face right now because honestly you were exactly that. thank you. blake: man, i think you're a really good singer. i just -- i know i'm country. i couldn't understand one word he was saying. but you're a really good singer. chris, that was so exceptionally beautiful. that was the most... thanks. that was wonderful. wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. and you're obviously american. [ laughs ] right? oh, i'm from kansas. okay. [ blake laughs ] that's right in the heart of america right there. why that song? man... i'm in awe of it. i love that song. i wanted to come out -- you know, i felt -- this is my voice, and i've -- it's been hard for me. i've been at it for a while, and i've tried to sort of shrink my voice down to fit. but i decided for this show, i was gonna just sing like myself. christina: whoo! [ c

>> i think what resonates most with me is the purity of her voice. the sin gu hairty of her voice.r bowl xxv, just the pride in herself, the pride in her country on that day, just the sort of easy and almost nonchalant way she went about singing that very difficult to sing song. she was an amazing, amazing voice. >> there's so many modern day artists, recent, you know, recent to hit fame, alicia keys, adele, both of them have spoken about how much they admired whitney houston. how much they learned from her range, how much they tried to emulate about her as an artist. were a lot of artists feeling that way? >> i don't think that there's -- i don't think there's a woman singer, female pop singer in the world, especially a

now, that's a voice! your name? one second. [ laughs ] oh, sorry. [ laughs ] i'm chris mann. chris, that was pretty phenomenal. and you know what? i just love seeing the statement "the voice" behind your face right now because honestly you were exactly that. thank you. blake: man, i think you're a really good singer. i just -- i know i'm country. i couldn't understand one word he was saying. but you're a really good singer. chris, that was so exceptionally beautiful. that was the most... thanks. that was wonderful. wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. and you're obviously american. [ laughs ] right? oh, i'm from kansas. okay. [ blake laughs ] that's right in the heart of america right there. why that song? man... i'm in awe of it. i love that song. i wanted to come out -- you know, i felt -- this is my voice, and i've -- it's been hard for me. i've been at it for a while, and i've tried to sort of shrink my voice down to fit. but i decided for this show, i was gonna just sing like myself. christina: whoo! [ c

i could write a section in her voice and not only be in his voice. those things don't come until you need to work them out. that stumped me for awhile and came to with when she and the other villagers who contract lepercy decide to kill themselves to not bring shame to the village. and she can't do it. the man servant who's story that steven slowly finds out rescues her. >> even now i feel the cold waves pushing and pulling against my legs as a stood knee deep in the ocean. there was a flock of birds flying over head. their voices leading us on. as the water lapped around me i saw a man the father of a school friend walk straight into the ocean he never turned back. one moment he was there and in the next he was swaulode by the sea. one woman took a knife and slashed her wrists. i remember how the bloodstreamed down her arms. she turned toward me with a strange smile handed me her knife. it felt so light. i looked down and saw it covered with the woman's blood. i wanted to scream and saw i lost my voice. don't be frightened, the old woman said, find

the voice of an angel.ours now as moving coverage with the voice. >> we will always love you, whitney. ♪ ♪ ♪

>> it will be her voice.tney houston was one of the greatest entertainers of all-tile. many say she had a god-given voice, something that came from on high. it was effortless when she opened her mouth and she really not only delivered lyrics, she touched your core when she sang so i think more than anything f tremendous talent. >> what do you think culturally she did. >> culturally in many ways luke a jackie robinson type character. whitney houston entered into everyone's homes, not just black homes, she was the ambassador for the r&b music and african-american culture and one of those entertainers that black people felt did us proud. >> and i mean, she crossed all race boundaries and barriers i have to say. >> absolutely. >> i was a huge fan of whitney houston's and all of my friends were. we all couldn't get enough of her and couldn't go to as many concerts as we possibly could. >> she single-handedly defined music in the '80s, ruled the pop culture charts enthe billboard charts. i don't think any young gir

voice sounds now?erything he's got. but doing 86 shows is a lot to ask. >> reporter: as for the damage done, dr. nasseri says doing minimally invasive surgery, like adele had done, heals the vocal chords with little risk. but it's a last resort. thanks to the cautionary tale of julie andrews. her singing voice was damaged after surgery in 1997. but it's never too late to look after your voice. as savvy superstars have learned. paul, congratulations on all that rock 'n' roll has brought you here. >> rock 'n' roll has been good to me. but i've done my time. >> reporter: after more than four decades on the road, paul stanley of kiss has performed thousands of shows. but all those high notes took their toll. >> as soon as you take the stage, you're a complete idiot because all those people are cheering for you. if you don't give yourself time to recuperate, it catches up with you. >> reporter: he had surgery on his vocal cords, by noted dr. steven zietell. what did he tell you? >> he said my vocal cords lo

, oprah winfrey tweeted "to me whitney was the voice.g." >> whitney houston! >> reporter: dolly parton who presented a grammy award to houston offered this "mine is only one of the millions of hearts broken over the death of whitney houston." more than a voice she was the inspiration to a new generation. >> whitney and i'll be like -- ♪ i want to dance with somebody ♪ >> reporter: and from mariah carey. ♪ >> reporter: who joined forces with houston after once rivaling her on the pop charts she tweeted, "she will never be forgotten as one of the greatest voices to ever grace the earth." then there was this from barbra streisand "how sad her gifts could not bring her the same happiness they brought us." a chorus of mourning for the loss of one of the greats. ♪ >> reporter: linsey davis, abc news, new york. >>> our thanks to linsey tonight and we'll be back with the other headlines of this sunday in just a moment. [ male announcer ] from the soups you know and love come soups that you'll love getting to know. new slow kettle style soups fro

>> yes, i'm here. >> what a voice. what a loss. >> she was a great voice, don.rs. i don't know anyone that had the voice she had and the sense of humanity. and i think that all of us were rooting for her to rebound and i believe she was on the rebound. i saw her last year and she looked healthy. i would talk to her mother all the time. she comes from a great family. dionne, her aunt. i'm in los angeles ironically and we're doing at church tomorrow morning a prayer for her family, her daughter. i'm still numb and shocked. i'm here in beverly hills. i know a lot of the pre-grammy festivities going on and people are just walking around in a stupor. but i would hope that we remember the gifts she had and what she shared with so many and that we all pause in prayer for her daughter and her family, her mom and so many because god gave whitney a voice that she shared with the world. and i would hope that all the negative press and the battering would take a pause and remember this great talent that really brought music to another level. >> hey, reverend, you know what

the voice of an angel. after hours now as moving coverage with the voice. >> we will always love you, whitney. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >>> the breaking news that is ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

the voice of an angel.urs now as moving coverage with the voice. >> we will always love you, whitney. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

it's amazing and it's a testament to the quality of her voice. this is the voice.ant to note, this is aretha franklin's god-daughter and that sort of resonates figuratively in that she takes what aretha franklin did, and updates it into the pop milieu. they both come from gospel. and then of course whitney houston is sort of the mother of the modern pop diva, beyonce, adele, mariah, mary j. blige, on and on and on. they owe so much to her. >> joe, we've seen her troubles play out through the years and a lot of it in public. unfortunately, with that show, and through various interviews that she's given. but it seemed like her colleagues, her fans, kept rooting for her. you don't always get that with a lot of performers. it seemed like the public really wanted her to make it. >> her peers absolutely supported her. i think the public did, as well. what is so disappointing was that two years ago she had a record, she tried to mount a tour. it didn't work. it was another public meltdown. i saw her sing three years ago at clive davis' grammy party. the top range of her v

and she had that voice.hat could just turn a story, a melody, into just magical notes. i think about it all the time in terms of watching her just -- there was no end to what range she could hit. and of course, you think, okay, she can't get any better than that. and then she comes with another lick that's even more amazing than the last lick. i always think about myself. i'm a storyteller, so when you get someone who is that gifted with a voice, it almost -- it's almost angelic at some point. for her, it was just her signature, her signature was that beautiful voice she had. >> lionel, piers morgan is standing by in los angeles. piers, it's odd to see as we saw the closeups, i don't know if you could see the closeups of the beverly hilton, but you could see the red carpet inside. but piers, i'm sure you have a couple questions for lionel. >> there are swirling reports that the clive davis party may not be happening. they're still trying to decide what to do. he was the great mentor to whitney houston. he di

just her voice that made her a star.as as beautiful as a model, a crossover dream girl who was among the first african-americans to grace the cover of "seventeen" magazine. the public flocked to her concerts and bought her albums in record numbers. she once had seven number one singles in a row, more than elvis or the beatles. she reached the top of the music world, six grammys, 22 american music awards, and with clive davis who discovered her paving the way, an historic recording contract. always beyond her beauty and girl next door charm, she had that voice with such range and purity, she could hold an emotion to make you believe it. ♪ where do broken hearts go at 24, she sang that she already knew there was no easy way to her dreams, dreams that through the '90s took her into film, "the bodyguard" and "waiting to exhale" big hits. while she got some terrific reviews, she could act, it always came back to music. she even turned the national anthem into a pop chart hit with this rendition before super bowl xxv. ♪ o say

it was about her voice.ght but the path was laid by the work that whitney houston did in the '80s and '90s. >> i absolutely agree with you. seymour, where were you when you heard the tragic news? what first came to mind? >> caller: it was hard to believe that. it was such a tragedy. this was an alive gal with a magnificent voice. she was so into her singing that it was hard to believe. >> you listen to chris give an eloquent explanation of this voice. it's magical. you can't find superlatives to describe that voice in its prime. what did you think when you first heard her sing? >> caller: we couldn't believe it. somebody mentioned her to us and then finally we went to see her when she was singing backup for her mother and it was incredible. and then we worked with her until she was 18 and then we signed a contract and then we arranged for her to audition with several record companies. and clive grabbed her. and she signed with arista. been with clive ever since. >> seymour, that means you spotted her in newa

it's a very sad day. >> her voice, you know, her voice., that voice, oh, my god. no one has ever come close to that voice. >> you knew when that first note came out, that's whitney houston. >> she sings effortlessly, and i remember being in the studio with whitney. we were doing a song called "i'm your baby tonight." ♪ i'm your baby tonight >> she said, baby, okay, let's go in and knock this out, and in 20 minutes she sang the song top to bottom three times, did her vocal harmonies, the whole nine yards. sessions last for hours and days, right, to create what whitney houston did just in minutes. that record became a number one record. i want whitney to be remembered as the greatest voice of all time. >> she invented a particular kind of american pop soul singing. what happened was she became so successful and her work so powerful in this chosen medium, there was a genre that coalesced around that kind of singing. the two greatest moments in her career are very specifically crossover moments in very interesting ways. ♪ and i will always lov

it took a toll on her body and voice. she admitted to abusing alcohol, marijuana cocaine and first of centel's. after a lifetime of highs and lows, her music will live on as her life ended tragically at the age of 48. >>grant: a live in a festive celebration of the chinese new year. others stories, it is the year of the dragon. the dragon is said to be the most powerful animal in the chinese zodiac ferry if da lin brings us the sites in and sounds of the parade. >>da: large crowds packed downtown san francisco and chinatown to celebrate the year of the dragon. exploded firecrackers kicked off the new year's celebration. the performance was colorful and loud as they marched through the financial district. this striking was a cloud of favored. the san francisco parade is the largest outside of china. organizers say more than 100 businesses to participate. san francisco mayor ed lee was the grand marshal. >> it is special to be the first chinese asian mayor of the city. we are proud of our heritage but we get to share the cu

[voice 7] just tell the truth [voice 8] we love him. [voice 9] but we're not ready.laying music] mom, can we get some ice cream? please, mom, please? no, we're having dinner soon. [music playing] you don't have to be perfect to be a perfect parent. hold up! there are thousands of children in foster care who will take you just as you are.

you. >> that amazing voice, whitney will be remembered among hat amazing voice.by humphrey told me, remembering the early ears when whitney was a teenager and performed with her mother in new york city where she was discovered. >> she had started modeling and which one of the two would she pursue. there is a guy by the name of jerry griffith that i would like to give a lot of credit for. he was working in promotion over in aerostat. and he convinced the great clive davis to come hear the young lady and the rest is history. >> that history all of us followed including the attorney who recalls the memorable moment after hust hoon finished recording on the set of sparkle. >> she called us in a room and circle up 30 or 40 people and prayed with us and it was so powerful. she prayed for our travel and success of the movie and thanked god for doing a movie. she hadn't done a movie in 15 years. >> sadly, as she was looking at that movie as her final come back in the movie industry, that is something that never happened in life. that movie is scheduled to be released by

. >> people said her voice is not what it was, none of our voices are what they were.ged and she was working her way back. >> reporter: work alone couldn't head off the inevitable. >> every singer's voice has an expiration date. there were no plans at the time of her death for an album. ♪ i had no hope >> reporter: in this song from her last album sung at the 2009 american music awards, houston showed even with her voice hitting limits, she could deliver something special. ♪ i crept down some more but i did not crumble ♪ >> reporter: in the end she did crumble, but that voice will remain unforgettable. mike taibbi, nbc news, los angeles. ♪ thank you, thank you i love you! >> that's our broadcast on a monday night. thank you for being here with us as we start off a new week. i'm brian williams. we hope to see you back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> good evening everyone. i'm jessica aguirre. >>> i'm raj mathai. >>> for so many people, pets are family members. a man mourning the brutal attack on his dog. the small dog was sto

[voice 7] just tell the truth [voice 8] we love him. [voice 9] but we're not ready. [heart] ok, that makes sense. i want to wait. >>> that wraps it up for us here at "our world with black enterprise." don't forget to visit our website at blackenterprise.com/facebook, follow me on twitte twitter @marklamonthill. thanks so much, see you next week. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

her voice was so strong. when she came out in the 80s, i don't think anyone had ever seen -- you and larry were speaking to this too -- an african-american woman with a voice like that who was so beautiful and so strong -- >> and a mouthful of white, beautiful teeth, the bone structure. i hate to wax poetic about whitney houston but she was a beautiful woman who was extremely talented. >> yes, absolutely. and again, i just -- you know, we're talking about this and i can kind of hear it in your voice. i'm still pretty stunned and it's hard to digest those words that whitney houston has died. but once again cnn has confirmed it through her representative, that whitney houston at the age of 48 has passed away. the last time i think that publicly a lot of people saw her was thursday night at the event she was at for kelly price and then i think she was at another event after that. and, again, our staffer saw her on thursday evening at -- with clive davis doing interviews for his pre -- >> nischelle, are you still

and-and a voice that will be heard. you guys are the faces and the voices of recovery, and the state needs to see that and to know that giving us half a chance, we can turn out to be some pretty wonderful people. texas recovers is proud to present thomas "hollywood" henderson, a man in long-term recovery. how you doin', thomas? (applause) the suffering need to know that-that there is an us, and the us need to reach out to the suffering. and so bringing events like this around the country lets people know that people recover. people recover. substances took me down some roads that i shouldn't have gone down. i spent 7 months in treatment, aftercare, morning care, every care, give me some care, where is the care? i'm probably the proudest recovering alcoholic in the world. i haven't had a drink or a drug for 27 years, 10 months, and a few days. (applause) you get to build a new life- because a lot of times people who talk about recovery talk about they want things back. "i wanna to get this back, and i wanna to get that b

, with usually singers say you either have a great tone to your voice, a great voice that sounds wellr you have the very muscular voice where you can sing big. usually you have one or the other. he said whitney houston had both and that was an amazing combination. let me show you more of the crowd here. so let's walk through some of this stuff. these are the reporters. look at all of them lined up here. we're still on live. are we on? can you still see us in the control room? great. we're good. we may run out of battery. if we do, take it back. but look at all the crowd here. back over, if you go this way, turn to the right, you can see the balloons. that's where people will be arriving and you see the mounted police officers there. also -- >> i think we ran out of battery, just like don was saying. but to finish up the thoughts that don was making, they were talking about nippy, how she got her nickname. her dad thought she got into some trouble like a cartoon character. but i should stress after spending time in new york and her sfrendz and her principal, this is a girl that never g