Whitney Elizabeth Houston (born August 9, 1963) is an American pop, R&B, Soprano soul/gospel singer, songwriter, record producer, film producer and actress. She is one of the most successful and popular singers of the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s.Her style of singing has influenced artists such as Kelly Price, Mariah Carey, Christina Aguilera, and Deborah Cox among others. She is a touring singer, having conducted numerous worldwide tours in her career and sings live in concert as well as in televised events. She is one of the few musical acts in history to have sold over 100 million albums, not counting singles as most acts do to boost their sales figure. This 100 million milestone is especially notable in that she achieved it on relatively few releases. She is also one of a handful of Black artists to receive heavy rotation on early MTV in the 1980's and her success, along with that of other 80's artists such as Michael Jackson, Prince (artist), and Janet Jackson, undoubtly opened the door for the network to air more videos by Black artists starting in the 1990's. Whitney has won twenty-one American Music Awards, a record for a solo artist, and six Grammys.