SHELBY, N.C. -- Whitney Houston’s brother-in-law, who lives in Cleveland County, said he saw the singer on New Year’s Eve, and she was doing great.
Billy Watson lives in Shelby, where he and his sister, Patricia Houston, grew up. Patricia Houston is married to Whitney Houston’s half-brother, Gary, and is the singer’s manager. She now lives in Georgia.
Watson said he learned of Whitney Houston’s death from his daughter’s mother. He was shocked, but said, “Maybe it was her time.”
Whitney Houston’s bodyguard found her dead in her room at a Beverly Hills hotel Saturday, according to Los Angeles police.
He said there was no indication of trouble in the singer’s life.
Watson said Houston had just visited Shelby in October for a Teen Summit put together by Patricia Houston. He said she entertained the crowd at the Don Gibson Theater in downtown Shelby.
“She loved everybody,” said Watson. “That’s the way she was.”
At her peak in the 1980s and `90s, Houston the golden girl of the music industry and one of the world's best-selling artists.
Among her hits were "How Will I Know," "Saving All My Love for You," and "I Will Always Love You." She won multiple Grammys including album and record of the year.
Her success carried her beyond music to movies like "The Bodyguard."
But by the end of her career, drug use took its toll as her record sales plummeted and her voice became raspy and hoarse.
