With the recent release of Yaya DaCosta’s “Whitney” makeover, there has been a lot of talk about whether or not the former “America’s Next Top Model” would be able to deliver vocally. Well, if luck should have it, the 31-year-old won’t have to suffer under the pressure of performing Houston’s biggest hits at all.
According to “E! News,” Lifetime’s “Whitney Houston” biopic will feature the late legend’s music. However, the made-for-TV film will not feature her vocals. Stepping in to take the reins vocally is none other than R&B singer Deborah Cox.
Although the “music rights and clearances are still being worked out,” Cox will provide the “vocal tracks,” a Lifetime rep tells “E!”
And while the Houston family is not involved in any area of production, as many would see fit, Bassett says that she really just desires to tell Bobby and Whitney’s roller coaster love story.
“I really just want to tell a story about a boy and a girl who fell in love,” she recently told CNN. “And these are the words and this is the place, and these are the people on the outside, you know? And I want to be as honest as I can about doing that,” Bassett continued.
Rounding out the cast are Suzzanne Douglas as her mother, Cissy Houston; Yolanda Ross as Robyn Crawford, Houston’s best friend; and Mark Rolston as Clive Davis, the music industry icon who discovered Houston in 1983.
The Angela Bassett-directed film, which is currently shooting in Los Angeles, is set to premiere on Lifetime next year. Will you be watching?! –ruthie hawkins/@ruubabie
