Whitney Houston has been found dead in a hotel room in LA, her publicist has confirmed. She was forty-eight.
According to reports, the singer was getting ready to attend a pre-Grammys party when paramedics were called. TMZ is claiming that she was found in the bath.
As yet the cause of her death is unknown. Beverley Hills Police Lt. Mark Rosen who attended the scene has said that there were "no obvious signs of criminal intent". A full post-mortem will now take place.
It was a surreal scene at the hotel. While police cordoned off Whitney's room, reporters were waiting to interview her before music mogul Clive Davis' annual gala.
Downstairs party guests like Kim Kardashian and Britney Spears had begun to arrive, some only hearing the sad news at the hotel bar.
Davis was Whitney's mentor. He told gala guests: "I am personally devastated. She graced this stage wither her regal presence so many times.
"Whitney would have wanted the music to go on and her family have asked us to carry on."
Her godmother, Aretha Franklin, said in a statement: "I just can't talk about it now. It's so stunning and unbelievable. I couldn't believe what I was reading coming across the TV screen."
The singer had publicly struggled with alcohol and drug addiction. She ended her fourteen year marriage to Bobby Brown in 2008.
It seemed she was getting her life back on track in recent years. A "devastated" Simon Cowell told Piers Morgan that the singer was being considered as a judge for the next series of X Factor US. He said a meeting to discuss the appointment had been scheduled for tomorrow morning.
Mariah Carey has also been speaking about her "good friend's" death. She tweeted: "Heartbroken and in tears over the shocking death of my friend, the incomparable Ms. Whitney Houston. My heartfelt condolences to Whitney's family and to all her millions of fans throughout the world. She will never be forgotten as one of the greatest voices to ever grace the earth."
Footage of the legendary singer's last performance has emerged online. Watch it here.
