Whitney Houston

Whitney Houston signed to Arista at nineteen and released a debut in 1985 that became the best-selling solo first album ever made. Whitney followed in 1987, making her the first woman to open at number one in the US and UK simultaneously. Her Super Bowl XXV rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" in 1991 became definitive. The Bodyguard arrived in 1992, its soundtrack topping the Billboard 200 for twenty weeks and winning Album of the Year; "I Will Always Love You" became the best-selling single by a woman. She renewed with Arista in 2001 for $100 million, but drug use and a turbulent marriage…