Claim: Whitney Houston played the lead role in the first film directed by Forest Whitaker.

Whitney Elizabeth Houston -LRB- August 9 , 1963 -- February 11 , 2012 -RRB- was an American singer , actress , producer , and model . In 2009 , Guinness World Records cited her as the most awarded female act of all time . Houston is one of pop music 's best-selling music artists of all-time , with an estimated 170 -- 200 million records sold worldwide . She released seven studio albums and two soundtrack albums , all of which have diamond , multi-platinum , platinum , or gold certification . Houston 's crossover appeal on the popular music charts , as well as her prominence on MTV , starting with her video for `` How Will I Know '' , influenced several African American women artists who follow in her footsteps .   Houston is the only artist to chart seven consecutive No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 songs . She is the second artist behind Elton John and the only woman to have two number-one Billboard 200 Album awards -LRB- formerly `` Top Pop Albums '' -RRB- on the Billboard magazine year-end charts . Houston 's debut album , Whitney Houston -LRB- 1985 -RRB- , became the best-selling debut album by a woman in history . Rolling Stone named it the best album of 1986 , and ranked it at number 254 on the magazine 's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time . Her second studio album , Whitney -LRB- 1987 -RRB- , became the first album by a woman to debut at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart .   Houston 's first acting role was as the star of the feature film The Bodyguard -LRB- 1992 -RRB- . The film 's original soundtrack won the 1994 Grammy Award for Album of the Year . Its lead single , `` I Will Always Love You '' , won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year and became the best-selling single by a woman in music history . With the album , Houston became the first act -LRB- solo or group , male or female -RRB- to sell more than a million copies of an album within a single week period under Nielsen SoundScan system . The album makes her the top female act in the top 10 list of the best-selling albums of all time , at number four . Houston continued to star in movies and contribute to their soundtracks , including the films Waiting to Exhale -LRB- 1995 -RRB- and The Preacher 's Wife -LRB- 1996 -RRB- . The Preacher 's Wife soundtrack became the best-selling gospel album in history .   On February 11 , 2012 , Houston was found dead in her guest room at the Beverly Hilton , in Beverly Hills , California . The official coroner 's report showed that she had accidentally drowned in the bathtub , with heart disease and cocaine use listed as contributing factors . News of her death coincided with the 2012 Grammy Awards and featured prominently in American and international media .