Inside Whitney Houston’s Relationship with Best Friend Robyn Crawford: A Story of Love, Friendship, and Loyalty
Their relationship was originally between a lover and a best friend, but later developed into lifelong friendship full of love, understanding and loyalty. It was a bond that combined both women’s lives in ways unique and lasting decades.
Crawford The Beginning: A Summer in 1980
In East Orange in 1980, two youths met while working their normal summer jobs at a local community centre. Robyn Crawford, aged just 19, and Whitney Houston, a student of 16, immediately felt connected with one another. In an Esquire article, Crawford retold their first meeting: “She said, ‘Whitney Elizabeth Houston,’ and I knew right then she was special.”
Already Whitney was active as a Wilhelmina model, taking in shows at Manhattan, yet she still found time every summer to work. The two became fast friends and Whitney firmly told Robyn: “Stick with me and I’ll take you all over the world.”
A Friendship That Transcended Roles
Over the years, Crawford played many different roles in Whitney Houston’s life: from friend to assistant, executive assistant, and finally creative director. Their friendship was deep and as Crawford wrote in her 2019 memoir, A Song for You: My Life with Whitney Houston, it was a key relationship in both of their lives.
Crawford felt compelled to tell their story, saying, “I wanted to elevate her legacy, give her the respect she deserved, and share the tale of who she was before the fame–in that way also to embrace our friendship.” Their connection, while extremely intimate, was kept private for many years.
The Romantic Chapter in their Friendship During that first summer, friendship between them steered into something much further. As she wrote in Esquire, Crawford summarizes what the linkage between the two of them was: a natural, physical desire. But their love affair was not confined to summer. “It was then we first met in that first summer, when our lips met for the first time,” she shared. They didn’t worry about the future, but lived the little while they might together, as very close friends.
Keeping a Secret Love Affair Based on Their Relationship As their relationship deepened, Whitney and Robyn both felt it was their own private thing. “We reached such a level of intimacy in many respects,” said Crawford. “The bond between us was so deep.” However, it became increasingly difficult to keep the affair a secret when Whitney began to rise to fame. Not even Crawford’s mother, upon meeting Whitney, found any depth in her.”You look like an angel,” she told Houston, “but I know very well you are not.”
However, the truth of a relationship between them remained undisclosed to family and friends. Asked who knew of their love affair, Crawford said: “No one.” The Moment When Their Love Could No Longer Last The love affair between Crawford and Whitney Houston, however, could not endure. Shortly after Whitney signed a historic record deal with Arista in 1982, Crawford recalls illuminated her own book for us that she was told by Whitney they could no longer be physical. “She said, ‘There’s no way we can go on being physical.’” Whitney understood the harsh realities of the music business and feared that their relationship could be used against them.
To confirm her decision, Whitney gave Robyn a blue Bible, the classic symbol of renunciation is everywhere. “So in the end,” Crawford remembered, “she was concerned that people might hurt us with this and fuel the fire of rumor. Back then, that’s how bad it actually felt.”
Stray with Whitney
Whitney’s career was ascending, and yet Crawford stuck by her side through thick and thin even though the two were no longer lovers. The two would go around the world together. Crawford managed all the day-to-day affairs as admirably as ever, something he had learned as an assistant to Rev. Jesse Jackson out of college. Despite her fame Whitney was always looking out for those close to her. As Crawford remembers: ‘I flew first-class everywhere, and Whitney made sure everyone she worked with was well taken care of. Her trade checks never bounced, and she shared her success with all those around her.’
Crawford’s relationship with Whitney continued through the years of her greatest activity, from hit albums to blockbuster movies like The Bodyguard. He remained a rock for her during high times and low, writing into memoirs: “It was hard, but she never left anything undone; she would work hard and when it was done, she nailed it.”
An Unhappy Ending to Whitney’s Later Years
After Bobby Brown came into Whitney’s life, her relationship with Crawford began to change. By the time of Whitney’s tragic death, the two were no longer on speaking terms. Nevertheless they always had great understanding and respect for each other.
After Whitney was found dead in her bathtub in February 2012, Crawford took some time to look back at the timing. He said that February was significant to Whitney’s career: “It was her month might–her first album released on Valentine’s Day, around the Grammys and Clive Davis’s party. And she passed it just before all of that.” Crawford talked about his profound sorrow, and said that even though they weren’t in touch at the time he somehow felt obliged to continue. “She picked up the phone and, in an instant I knew she couldn’t. And she knew that I wouldn’t either. I would never betray her. Now, I can”t believe I’ll never hug her nor hear her laughter again.”
The Legacy of Their Friendship.Well before Whitney really hit the bigtime, their romantic relationship was ancient history. But their love and respect for each other never wavered. It was on Crawford to keep up the memory of Whitney. Even after her death, Crawford remained a trustee of her estate and had to see to it that all clauses in contracts entered into by or for Houston were honored. (731 Whitney Houston I Will Always) Christgau: She was an intimate who knew both Whitney Houston the human being and Whitney Houston the superstar.The story she tells helps fans understand Whitney’s journey, with all its public victories and private defeats. You shared “a deep, connected, loyal” friendship with her, the two women’s feelings were essentially ones and same.— Carl Streator
FAQs
- Were Whitney Houston and Robyn Crawford ever romantically involved?
Yes, Robyn Crawford has confirmed in her memoir that their relationship was initially romantic but evolved into a deep friendship as Whitney’s career took off. - Why did Whitney Houston end her romantic relationship with Robyn Crawford?
Whitney ended their physical relationship after signing her record deal, believing it could negatively impact her career in the music industry. - Did Robyn Crawford remain in Whitney Houston’s life after their romantic relationship ended?
Yes, Crawford continued to work closely with Whitney, serving as her assistant and creative director, and they remained friends for many years. - Why did Robyn Crawford write a book about her friendship with Whitney Houston?
Crawford felt compelled to share the story of their friendship and to honor Whitney’s legacy by revealing the woman behind the fame. - Were Whitney Houston and Robyn Crawford still friends when Whitney passed away?
Although they were estranged at the time of Whitney’s death, Crawford maintained that they always had a deep understanding and respect for one another.
