American singer, actress, producer and entertainer
Whitney Houston, who is known as “The Voice”, released seven studio albums, eight
compilations, three soundtrack albums, five
box sets, six
extended plays, and 57
singles. She has sold over 220 million records worldwide,[1][2] becoming one of the best-selling music artists in history. According to the
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), Houston is the best-selling female R&B artist of the 20th century,[3] and has sold 100 million certified records in the United States.[4] She is also the fourth best-selling female album artist in the US with 61 million certified album sales.[5] In addition, until the launch of the RIAA's digital certification program in 2004, she had sold 16.5 million physical singles—more than any other female solo artist in history.[6] According to the
Official Charts Company in October 2012, Houston is the fourth-biggest-selling female singles artists of all-time list with a sales total of 8.5 million singles in that country.[7][8]
The Bodyguard, a soundtrack from her film debut, was released on November 17, 1992. The album contains tracks by other recording artists, but was considered to be a Houston album by Billboard. It topped the Billboard 200 for 20 non-consecutive weeks, one of the longest tenures by an album in the
Nielsen SoundScan era.[15] The album was certified 18× platinum in the United States, giving the artist her third diamond album, and sold over 45 million copies worldwide, becoming the best-selling album by a female artist, the best-selling soundtrack album of all time, and one of the
best-selling albums of all time.[16] The lead single from the soundtrack, "
I Will Always Love You", topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart for a then-record-breaking fourteen weeks and the song alone was certified Diamond in the United States, peaked at number one on the charts in nearly every country and sold over 24 million copies globally, becoming the best-selling single by a female act and one of
the best-selling singles of all time.[17][18] Houston contributed three songs, including her eleventh number-one single "
Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" on the 7× platinum soundtrack album, Waiting to Exhale (November 1995). In November 1996, she released this soundtrack, called The Preacher's Wife. This soundtrack sold six million copies worldwide, certified 3× platinum in the US, and is the best-selling gospel album of all time.[19] In 1998, she released her fourth studio album, My Love Is Your Love. The album went on to achieve multi-platinum status with 10 million units sold worldwide, being certified 4× platinum in the United States.[20] From late 1998 to early 2000, the album generated five singles; "
When You Believe" (duet with
Mariah Carey); "
Heartbreak Hotel" (with
Faith Evans and
Kelly Price; "
It's Not Right but It's Okay"; "
My Love Is Your Love"; and "
I Learned from the Best".[21]
Houston entered the 2000s with her first greatest hits compilation, Whitney: The Greatest Hits, released on May 16, 2000. The double-disc has been certified 5× platinum in the United States. The album hit the top position on the
UK Albums Chart and sold over 1.66 million copies in the UK alone. It reached number-one and top ten in many international markets, selling 10 million copies globally.[21]Just Whitney, released in December 2002, became her first album after renewing her contract with Arista Records for the largest recording contract in history, a record $100 million deal in 2001.[22] The album received platinum status in the US, and sold two million copies worldwide, but became her lowest-selling album to date. Houston released a Christmas album, One Wish: The Holiday Album in November 2003, which was certified gold in the US, quite a respectable number for a holiday album. In September 2009, Houston returned to the top position on the Billboard 200 chart with her album I Look to You, becoming her fourth number-one album on the chart. It also topped the album charts of several European countries and was certified platinum by the RIAA. Her albums Whitney Houston, Whitney, The Bodyguard and Whitney: The Greatest Hits are among the top 100 certified albums according to the RIAA.[23] In 2020, Houston became the first black artist ever to have three diamond-certified albums; Whitney Houston, Whitney, and The Bodyguard each shipped over 10 million copies in the US alone.[24]
A limited-edition four 12-inch vinyl box set, containing eight full club versions of selected remixes found on the American release of Whitney: The Greatest Hits.
In summer of 2006, it was released digitally, re-titled Dance Vault Mixes: The Unreleased Mixes (Special Collector's Box Set).[67]
Taiwanese limited edition box set for the album Love, Whitney, the 16-track CD plus a 40-page color discography/lyric booklet, packaged in a unique 6" × 5" picture box.
UK only 5-CD album set to coincide with her 2010 UK tour, that comprises five of Houston's UK best selling albums including Whitney Houston, Whitney, I'm Your Baby Tonight, The Bodyguard Soundtrack and My Love Is Your Love.
Each disc is presented in mini-LP style card picture sleeves, housed in a picture box with a lift-off lid.
Later the box set was also released in other European countries and entered the albums charts in the countries in February 2012:
Ireland (No. 48),[69]Spain (No. 70),[70] and
Sweden (No. 32).[71]
Box set including three original album releases of I'm Your Baby Tonight, My Love Is Your Love and Just Whitney.
The box set entered the Billboard 200 chart at No. 73, the issue date of March 10, 2012,[72] and peaked at No. 21 on its following week.[73] Also, it debuted at No. 74 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Album Chart on the week of March 3, 2012,[74] and peaked at No. 5 on its second week.[75]
Two Original Albums: My Love Is Your Love / I Look to You
Released: September 16, 2011
Label: Sony Music
Format: 2× CD
Box set including two original album releases of My Love Is your Love, and I Look to You.
It is the second release of Whitney Houston's albums as part of Sony's "Two Original Albums" series.
Japan only 6-track mini-album, that includes "How Will I Know" (Dance Remix), "You Give Good Love" (Extended Version), "Thinking About You" (Extended Dance Version), "Someone for Me" (Remix), "Thinking About You" (Dub Version) and "How Will I Know" (Instrumental Version).[76]
A 5 track mini-album, that includes "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)", "Dancin' On the Smooth Edge", "Moment of Truth", "Do You Hear What I Hear", and "It Isn't, It Wasn't, It Ain't Ever Gonna Be" (Duet With Aretha Franklin). It is also the single release of Exhale (Shoop Shoop).
You Are Loved
Released: January 17, 1999
Label: Arista (#14540-2)
Formats: CD
US limited edition 6-track compilation, containing "You Were Loved", "Saving All My Love for You", "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)", "Run to You", "All the Man That I Need", and "Why Does It Hurt So Bad", which was available exclusively at
Target stores with a big Target logo on the back of the CD.
Includes a total of eight remixes for three songs from the I Look to You album: two remix versions of "Million Dollar Bill", two of "I Didn't Know My Own Strength", and four of "I Look to You".[78]
A digital EP containing twelve remix versions of "I Look to You", six of them were mixed by
Johnny Vicious, three by Christian Dio and Giuseppe D. each.[79]
A 6-track digital EP, which features "Million Dollar Bill" remix versions, with three by
Freemasons and
Frankie Knuckles each.[80]
Notes
^I Wanna Dance with Somebody (The Movie: Whitney New, Classic and Reimagined) did not enter the
UK Albums Chart, but peaked at number 17 on the
UK Album Download Chart chart[53] and number 13 on the UK Soundtrack Albums chart.[54]
^I Go to the Rock: The Gospel Music of Whitney Houston did not enter the
Billboard 200 chart, but peaked at number 37 on the US
Top Album Sales chart.[63]
Top 100 (
Kent Music Report) peaks to June 19, 1988:
Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). Sydney: Australian Chart Book. p. 143.
ISBN0-646-11917-6. N.B. The Kent Report chart was licensed by
ARIA between mid-1983 and June 19, 1988.
Top 100 (ARIA) peaks from January 1990 to December 2010: Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
"Saving All My Love For You", "How Will I Know", "Greatest Love of All", "Didn't We Almost Have It All" and "I'm Every Woman" (ARIA) 2012 re-entries:
"The ARIA Report – Issue #1147"(PDF).
Australian Web Archive (original document published by ARIA). Archived from
the original(PDF) on March 15, 2012. Retrieved February 16, 2016.
The Bodyguard Soundtrack: Duffy, Thom (March 5, 1994).
"Multi-Artist Compilations Reaping Platinum Rewards in U.K". Billboard. Vol. 106, no. 10. p. 47.
ISSN0006-2510. Retrieved January 30, 2012. Note: The soundtrack was classified as a compilation for chart purposes, and thus the peak position for the soundtrack is that on the compilation chart, not the main albums chart. The soundtrack peaked at number one on its 6th week of release (January 2, 1993) and stayed the pole position for 11 non-consecutive weeks.Lane, Dan (February 13, 2012).
"Remembering Whitney: Her Top 20 biggest tracks revealed". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved February 20, 2012.
Just Whitney:
"Certifications Albums Or – année 2002". disqueenfrance.com. Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. December 12, 2002. Archived from
the original on January 25, 2012. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
^
abcdefghi(in Swedish)IFPI Sweden certifications for albums and singles:
From 1987 to 1998:
"Guld & Platina År 1987–1998"(PDF). International Federation of the Phonographic Industry – Sweden. Archived from
the original(PDF) on July 25, 2011. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
Since 2000:
My Love Is Your Love, Whitney: The Greatest Hits and "Could I Have This Kiss Forever":
"Guld & Platina År 2000"(PDF). International Federation of the Phonographic Industry – Sweden. Archived from
the original(PDF) on August 11, 2010. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
The Ultimate Collection:
"Guld & Platina År 2007"(PDF). International Federation of the Phonographic Industry – Sweden. December 17, 2007. Archived from
the original(PDF) on August 11, 2010. Retrieved November 21, 2011.
I Look to You:
"Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 2009"(PDF). International Federation of the Phonographic Industry – Sweden. September 3, 2009. Archived from
the original(PDF) on July 25, 2011. Retrieved September 11, 2011.
^In the US sales of The Bodyguard Soundtrack, 1,310,000 copies sold from BMG Music Clubs was added to 12,140,000 from Nielsen SoundScan as of October 2014.
^Mitchell, Gail (October 30, 1999).
"Double Dose Of Divas". Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 44. p. 21. Retrieved August 3, 2023. Arista Records will release "VH1 Divas Live '99" on Nov. 2.
^Whitney: Dancin' Special (back cover). Whitney Houston. Japan: BMG Victor Inc. 1988. A28D-1. Retrieved January 21, 2012.{{
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