Whitney Houston’s Funeral: Stars Expected to Attend, Speak
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Kevin Mazur/AMA2009/WireImageUPDATE: Whitney Houston will be buried Sunday in Westfield, N.J.’s Fairview Cemetery, a law enforcement source told ABC News on Friday. She will be laid to rest next to her father, John Russell Houston, who died in 2003.
Her burial will be one day after her Saturday funeral at Newark’s New Hope Baptist Church.
(NEW YORK) — Though Whitney Houston’s funeral will be a private, invite-only affair, it will reportedly feature some of the biggest celebrities the late pop icon worked with, including Kevin Costner.
Costner, Houston’s Bodyguard co-star, will speak at the service held at Newark, N.J.’s New Hope Baptist Church starting at noon on Saturday, People magazine reported Thursday. Representatives for Houston and Costner did not respond to ABC News’ requests for comment.
Aretha Franklin and Stevie Wonder will sing at the service, and Houston’s record producer from the start of her career, Clive Davis, will also speak.
Houston’s ex-husband, Bobby Brown, has denied reports that he was being barred from the services by Houston’s family but has yet to confirm that he will be there.
He has been by the side of his daughter with Houston, Bobbi Kristina, since Sunday. She was hospitalized for stress and anxiety after Houston’s Saturday death.
One of Houston’s family members told ABC News that while many people in the family don’t want Brown to attend the funeral, they can’t stop him because of his connection with Bobbi Kristina.
But it appears that soon after the funeral, he’ll strike off on his own. A rep for his band, New Edition, said Thursday that Brown will perform a scheduled concert at Connecticut’s Mohegan Sun casino on Saturday night.
Multiple celebrities are rumored to be attending. The Star-Ledger newspaper in New Jersey reported Thursday that Oprah Winfrey and Bill Cosby will be at the services. It was also reported that Elton John would attend but John’s representatives denied it to ABC News.
The Revs. Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton are attending. Others confirmed on the guest list are Chaka Khan, Bebe and CeCe Winans, songwriter Diane Warren, pop singer Darlene Love, Bishop T.D. Jakes, Antonio “L.A.” Reid, Brandy and Ray J, the singer Houston was rumored to be in a relationship with before her death.
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