The Queen of Soul will headline the funeral of her goddaughter, the Queen of Pop, this Saturday in Newark, N.J., according to the Daily News.
Aretha Franklin reportedly reached out and offered her services to sing at the Saturday, Feb. 18, service for Whitney Houston, who died last Saturday in Beverly Hills. The family is also reportedly looking at BeBe and CeCe Winans to sing at the funeral.
The invitation-only funeral at New Hope Baptist Church will include Houston friends and celebrities such Ray J, Clive Davis, L.A. Reid and Chaka Khan, to name a few. There were reportedly more than 1,500 guests invited. One of the names missing from that list is Houston's ex-husband, Bobby Brown, who, according to reports, was banned from attending. However, sources told the Daily News that Whitney's mother, Cissy Houston, expects Brown to be there to console his 18-year-old daughter, Bobbi Kristina.
While the cause of death has yet to be determined, investigators are currently looking at the doctors who prescribed the prescription bottles found in the hotel room where Houston died. Houston will be buried next to her father, John Russell Houston, in a Fairview, N.J., cemetery, according to TMZ.
Fans will be able to view the funeral online through live streaming at http://livestream.com/aplive. The event will also be available to broadcasters via satellite.
Read more at the Daily News.
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