Once one of the most popular and successful solo singers in the world, Whitney Houston has primarily been known over the past several years for her battles with drug addiction and her rocky relationship to rapper Bobby Brown.  Unfortunately, all that came to an end today when Whitney Houston died at the age of 48.

Houston's was confirmed by her publicist Kristen Foster.  Houston was pronounced dead at the Beverly Hills Hotel at 3:55p, though a cause of death is not yet known.  Beverly Hills police say that are not currently signs of criminal intent surrounding Houston's death.  Houston was in Beverly Hills to attend the the annual Pre-Grammy party at the Beverly Hilton, hosted by her mentor Clive Davis.

With more than 55 million albums sold in America, Whitney Houston's fall from grace was a tragic one.  While battling drug addiction, Houston still tried to work, but her record sales had suffered.  In 2002, Houston told ABC's Diane Sawyer,

"The biggest devil is me. I'm either my best friend or my worst enemy,"

Houston's popularity peaked in 1992 when she appeared in the hit movie "The Bodyguard" with Kevin Costner, and had a hit song from the film, a remake of Dolly Parton's hit "I Will Always Love You".  She made a return to acting in 1995 with films like "The Preacher's Wife" and "Waiting To Exhale", but it was during this time her drug abuse was taking control of her life.  In 2010, Houston told Oprah that during the time of "The Preacher's Wife",

"(doing drugs) was an everyday thing. ... I would do my work, but after I did my work, for a whole year or two, it was every day. ... I wasn't happy by that point in time. I was losing myself."

Houston tried to reboot her career recently with a world tour, but off key performances lead to many fans walking out of show.  Cancelled performances led many to believe Houston was abusing drugs again, but she denied the accusations, blaming illness for the cancelled shows.

UPDATES:

A "Plethora of sedatives" found in Whitney Houston's hotel room

via MSNBC and Eonline

More From 92.9 NiN