If only Whitney was still here to celebrate…
With the release of “Sparkle,” the movie that Whitney Houston had just completed at the time of her death, impending, the time has come for the first music from the soundtrack to be unveiled. “Celebrate” is an uptempo song that is vaguely reminiscent of 2009’s “Million Dollar Bill” and also has a gospel-ish tone to it, which reminds me of Whitney’s songs on The Preacher’s Wife soundtrack. I’d kinda forgotten that Jordin Sparks (who plays Whitney’s daughter in the movie) was a powerhouse vocalist herself, and she and Whitney have a definite chemistry on this track. Of course, it’s bittersweet in a way that it was certainly not intended to be when it was recorded, but it’s still a potent reminder that even at the tail end of her career, and life, Whitney still had a voice to be reckoned with.