1979
Born to a musical family (her mother, gospel singer Cissy Houston — pictured with her daughter in 1983 — was a cousin of Dionne Warwick’s; Aretha Franklin was Whitney’s godmother), she sings backup at age 15 for her mother on Chaka Kahn’s hit ”I’m Every Woman.” Some 13 years later, Whitney would make her own version of the song a chart hit once again.
