*Rickey Smiley and Mo’Nique have become the latest public figures to defend Whitney Houston following Oprah Winfrey‘s recent comments about the late superstar’s final appearance on “The Oprah Winfrey Show.”
The comedian and radio host criticized Oprah and Gayle King while reacting to Oprah’s claim that Houston had relapsed on drugs and was high during her 2009 appearance. Oprah’s remarks, made during a conversation at Cannes Lions, resurfaced nearly 17 years after Houston’s appearance and quickly reignited debate across social media and entertainment outlets.
Rickey Smiley Defends Whitney Houston’s Legacy
During a recent reaction shared on his platforms, Smiley said Whitney Houston’s importance to the Black community outweighs speculation about her personal struggles.
“I don’t care if she was high or not,” Smiley said. “I just don’t play when it come to Whitney Houston. She is an aunt to us. She means a lot to the Black community. She is a treasure to Black folks.”
Smiley’s comments came after Oprah recalled Houston’s 2009 interview and performance, saying the singer “had gone back on drugs” and claiming she fell off the stage. Oprah also said she urged audience members not to share photos because it would “ruin her life.”
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Whitney Houston’s Estate and Bodyguard Reject Oprah’s Version
The remarks prompted an immediate response from Whitney Houston’s estate.
In a statement shared with TMZ, Pat Houston said Whitney did fall during a sound check but rejected the suggestion that drugs played any role.
“Whitney absolutely fell off the stage, but it was during a sound check, and it was due to the darkness of the area and her unfamiliarity with the stage,” Pat Houston said. “She was absolutely not high.”
The estate called it “inaccurate and unfair” to connect every difficult moment in Houston’s life to her past struggles, adding that the audience witnessed “discipline, talent, and commitment, not the assumptions others project.”
Houston’s longtime bodyguard, Ray Watson, later echoed that account in an interview with TMZ. Watson said the stage was dark, Houston misjudged the edge and simply stepped in the wrong place. He also disputed any suggestion that she was under the influence.
Mo’Nique Questions Oprah’s Decision
The controversy has also drawn a response from comedian Mo’Nique during a recent radio interview, in which she highlighted by Kempire on YouTube, in which the entertainment commentator discussed the growing backlash and played excerpts of her remarks.
Mo’Nique questioned the fairness of discussing incidents involving someone who is no longer alive to confirm or deny what happened.
“How do you speak about someone that can’t defend it?” she said. “Now you just want everybody to take your word because you’re the great Oprah Winfrey… I believe that’s unfair.”
She also said she still has “love” for Oprah while maintaining that public figures should be careful when discussing private moments involving deceased individuals who cannot respond.
The criticism from Smiley, Mo’Nique, Houston’s estate and Ray Watson underscores how fiercely Whitney Houston’s legacy continues to be defended. Houston, who died in 2012 at age 48, made her final appearance on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” in September 2009, performing “I Didn’t Know My Own Strength.” More than a decade later, differing accounts of that appearance continue to fuel passionate debate over how one of music’s greatest voices should be remembered.
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