Arts & Entertainment

Robyn Crawford breaks silence about relationship with Whitney Houston in new memoir

Published

7 years ago

November 6, 2019

Houston and Crawford in a still from the 2018 documentary “Whitney” (Image courtesy Lafayette Films/Passion Pictures)

After years of choosing not to comment on speculation surrounding her relationship with singer Whitney Houston, the late singer’s best friend Robyn Crawford is speaking out about it for the first time in her upcoming book, “A Song for You: My Life With Whitney Houston.”

In an excerpt from the book published today by People magazine, Crawford alleges that she and Houston were lovers, something that has been rumored since before the singer’s death in 2012 at the age of 48.

The pair met as teenagers at a summer camp in 1980, and – according to Crawford – went on to begin a physical relationship, which was then cut short when Houston signed a record deal with Clive Davis at Arista.

“She said we shouldn’t be physical anymore because it would make our journey even more difficult,” Crawford writes in the book. “She said if people find out about us, they would use this against us and back in the ’80s that’s how it felt.”

Nevertheless, the two of them remained friends, with Crawford explaining, “I kept it safe. I found comfort in my silence.”

Crawford also alleges that Houston’s mother Cissy voiced disapproval of a same-sex relationship between the two.

“Whitney told me her mother said it wasn’t natural for two women to be that close, but we were that close,” she writes.

Following her daughter’s death, Cissy Houston told Oprah Winfrey that she would have “absolutely had a problem” with her daughter being gay.

The singer went on to marry R&B artist Bobby Brown, with whom she had daughter Bobbi Kristina in 1993. The couple divorced in 2007.

Brown told US Weekly in in 2016, that Houston was bisexual, and added,“I really feel that if Robyn was accepted into Whitney’s life [by others], Whitney would still be alive today.”

When director Kevin MacDonald was developing his 2018 documentary about the singer, there were initial discussions with Crawford about participation in the production, but she eventually declined.

However, the filmmaker has talked about how Houston’s family generally characterized the two women as lovers.

“I think it’s fairly obvious when you talk to the family and friends,” Macdonald said. “Nobody is denying that Whitney and Robyn had a physical relationship – a sexual relationship,”

“They were partners for a number of years. My understanding is that relationship was over in a romantic sense by the mid-’80s when Whitney became a big star.”

As for why she decided to come forward so many years after Whitney’s tragic death, Crawford writes, “I’d come to the point where I felt the need to stand up for our friendship. And I felt an urgency to stand up and share the woman behind the incredible talent.”

The book drops on November 12.

Up Next

Boulet Brothers crown drag king winner of ‘Dragula’ season 3

Don't Miss

Gay penguin dads adopt a second time

FUND LGBTQ JOURNALISM

Sports

Jason Collins dies at 47

First openly gay man to actively play for major sports team battled brain cancer

Published

22 hours ago

May 12, 2026

Michael K. Lavers

Jason Collins (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to actively play for a major professional sports team, died on Tuesday after a battle with brain cancer. He was 47.

The California native had briefly played for the Washington Wizards in 2013 before coming out in a Sports Illustrated op-ed.

Collins in 2014 became the first openly gay man to play in a game for a major American professional sports league when he played 11 minutes during a Brooklyn Nets game. He wore jersey number 98 in honor of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student murdered outside of Laramie, Wyo., in 1998.

Collins told the Washington Blade in 2014 that his life was “exponentially better” since he came out. Collins the same year retired from the National Basketball Association after 13 seasons.

Collins married his husband, Brunson Green, in May 2025.

The NBA last September announced Collins had begun treatment for a brain tumor. Collins on Dec. 11, 2025, announced he had Stage 4 glioblastoma.

“We are heartbroken to share that Jason Collins, our beloved husband, son, brother and uncle, has died after a valiant fight with glioblastoma,” said Collins’s family in a statement the NBA released. “Jason changed lives in unexpected ways and was an inspiration to all who knew him and to those who admired him from afar. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers over the past eight months and for the exceptional medical care Jason received from his doctors and nurses. Our family will miss him dearly.”

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Collins’s “impact and influence extended far beyond basketball as he helped make the NBA, WNBA, and larger sports community more inclusive and welcoming for future generations.”

“He exemplified outstanding leadership and professionalism throughout his 13-year NBA career and in his dedicated work as an NBA Cares Ambassador,” said Silver. “Jason will be remembered not only for breaking barriers, but also for the kindness and humanity that defined his life and touched so many others.”

“To call Jason Collins a groundbreaking figure for our community is simply inadequate. We truly lost a giant today,” added Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson in a statement. “He came out as gay — while still playing — at a time when men’s athletes simply did not do that. But as he powerfully demonstrated in his final years in the league and his post-NBA career, stepping forward as he did boldly changed the conversation.”

“He was and will always be a legend for the LGBTQ+ community, and we are heartbroken to hear of his passing at the young age of 47,” she said. “Our hearts go out to his family and loved ones. We will keep fighting on in his honor until the day everyone can be who they are on their terms.”

Photos

PHOTOS: ‘Studio 69’

Glitterati Productions hold party at Bunker

Published

2 days ago

May 11, 2026

Michael Key

'Studio 69' was held at Bunker on Friday. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

Glitterati Productions held the “Studio 69” party at Bunker on Friday, May 8.

(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

Arts & Entertainment

Washington Blade’s Pride on the Pier returns June 13 to kick off D.C. Pride week

Pride on the Pier officially launches Pride Week in D.C.

Published

2 days ago

May 11, 2026

Staff reports

The Washington Blade’s annual Pride on the Pier celebration returns to The Wharf on Saturday, June 13, 2026 from 4-9 p.m., bringing thousands of LGBTQ community members and allies together for an unforgettable waterfront celebration to kick off Pride week in Washington, D.C.

Now in its eighth year, Washington Blade Pride on the Pier extends the city’s annual celebration of LGBTQ visibility to the bustling Wharf waterfront with an exciting array of activities and entertainment for all ages. The District Pier will offer DJs, dancing, drag, and other entertainment. Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase for those 21 and older.

“Pride on the Pier has become one of the signature moments of Pride in D.C.,” said Lynne Brown, publisher of the Washington Blade. “There’s nothing like watching our community come together on the waterfront with live music and incredible energy as we kick off Pride week.”

Pride on the Pier is free and open to the public, with VIP tickets available for exclusive pier access to the Dockmaster Building. To purchase VIP tickets visit www.prideonthepierdc.com/vip.

Additional entertainment announcements, sponsor activations, and event details will be released in the coming weeks.

Event Details:

📍 Location: District Pier at The Wharf (101 District Sq SW, Washington, DC)
📅 Dates: Friday, 13, 2026

⏱️ 4-9PM
🎟️ VIP Tickets: www.PrideOnThePierDC.com/VIP