McNutt Against the Music (EP)

It’s telling that when news of Houston’s death spread last night, one of the main clips traded around the internet was the isolated vocal from “How Will I Know.” The focus wasn’t on her songs, her records, her “texts”—there was a widespread desire to cut through all that and commune directly with the voice itself. This is part of being the kind of singer Houston was: The material you sing is not always important, not always good, and not always the point. You’re expected to come out, night after night, and turn anything… into a stirring perfect eye-opener. The material is just a playing field. This is a version of the artist as an athlete. She has an unparalleled physical talent, and the world expects her to keep it in peak condition, physically and mentally, battling vocal-cord nodules or emotional strain instead of torn ligaments and bone spurs, all the while remaining likable and confident. Houston still defines that role, right down to its modern TV form, the music-as-athletics competition of American Idol, which is swamped in her showstopping ballad style.