Robin Thicke honors the incomparable Whitney Houston with a stripped-down cover of her 1995 hit “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” performed on piano. The original, produced by Babyface, appeared on the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack and became the third single in history to debut atop the Billboard Hot 100. “This is my tribute to the great Whitney Houston,” tweeted Robin. “Sending my prayers to her family.”

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One familiar face that was missing from Whitney Houston’s homegoing service was her godmother, Aretha Franklin. The Queen of Soul had a show last night in New York City, but pulled out of her appearance at today’s funeral in Newark, New Jersey, where she was scheduled to perform. In a message posted on Facebook, she explained that she was unable to travel due to “leg spasms” and sent her prayers to the Houston family. She still plans to perform tonight at Radio City Music Hall. Read her statement below.

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While most will remember a lovely tribute to Whitney Houston, Bobby Brown will carry a different memory. The ex-husband of the pop icon departed early from the funeral service in Newark, New Jersey, after bringing a large group of guests with him. The New Edition singer arrived at the New Hope Baptist Church to pay his respects to his former wife and became visibly upset when he was told by security that everyone in his party could not be seated. He walked out of the church and later released a statement.

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Whitney Houston’s loved ones gathered to say farewell to the legendary singer they called “Nippy” at a private funeral in her hometown of Newark, New Jersey, on Saturday. Her fans across the world were able to view the homegoing service, which was broadcast globally from the New Hope Baptist Church, where Whitney grew up.

Following remembrances from her family and friends including Pastor Marvin Winans, Kevin Costner, Clive Davis, and cousin Dionne Warwick, some of music’s greatest voices performed emotional tributes to “The Voice” including Alicia Keys, R. Kelly, Stevie Wonder, Kim Burrell, and the Winans family.

Alicia Keys fought back tears as she shared memories of the woman she affectionately called Meema. “I feel like in so many ways, she reached back to so many people,” said Alicia, who sang “Send Me an Angel.” “She reached back to me, she reached back to Monica and Brandy and Jordin [Sparks] and all these beautiful young artists, and made us feel strong and capable and loved. She’s an angel to us and she’s been an angel to us. I think we’ve been sent an angel for a long time.”

Stevie Wonder personalized his classic “Ribbon in the Sky” for his dear friend. “This is such an emotional moment,” said Wonder. “I want to just stop and give all praise to God for just allowing me to be in life at the same time as Whitney.”

A visibly shaken R. Kelly performed “I Look to You,” the song he penned for Whitney’s 2009 album. “We love you, Whitney. Rest in peace,” he said.

Other celebrities paying their respects included Oprah Winfrey, Gayle King, Tyler Perry, Mariah Carey, L.A. Reid, Monica, Brandy, Ray J, and Diane Sawyer.

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Ray J is breaking his silence following the death of Whitney Houston. In a statement released via his publicist on Friday, the R&B star expressed his deep sorrow over the loss of his close friend.

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Whitney Houston’s music lives on. Following the pop icon’s untimely death on Saturday, her music has returned to the charts.

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Brandy and Monica shared a personal bond with Whitney Houston. Just days before her death, the singers spent time with their friend at rehearsals for Clive Davis’ pre-Grammy party. “E! News” caught up with them on set of the Chris Robinson-directed video for their new single “It All Belongs to Me” on Monday, where they shared memories of the late legend.

“She’s the reason why I sing. It’s just crazy, it’s so crazy,” said an emotional Brandy, who was at a loss for words. “Every step I make I’m gonna do my best to make her proud and that’s all I can do.”

Monica recalled first meeting Whitney when she was 14. “She was a jokester. I don’t know if people really understood that she was hilarious,” Mo told Clinton Sparks. “The other day, she came in and she heard mine and Bran’s song and she walks up to me and she goes, ‘You killin’ that run at the end.’ She was like, ‘And you know I know you stole it from me, right?’”

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The devastating loss of Whitney Houston continues to be felt throughout the music industry. Another one of her superstar peers, Janet Jackson, spoke about first learning of Whitney’s passing, her incredible talent, and advice to daughter Bobbi Kristina during her appearance on Anderson Cooper’s daytime talk show. “It’s very, very devastating and I pray for her and her family, even Bobby,” said a grief-stricken Janet.

On her reaction to the tragic news: “I couldn’t believe it. Immediately I started shaking. I was trying to text everyone that I knew to let them know and I was speechless. I could not believe it.”

On Whitney’s talent: “Incredible. She was known as the voice. When she would open her mouth and this instrument would come out, you would obviously understand why. She was such a sweet, sweet soul, especially back in the early ’80s and early ’90s is when I connected with Whitney the most. It doesn’t matter if we were doing an awards show, we would always take the time out to find one another. Either she’d come to my dressing room to say hey and I’d be in makeup, or I’d find her in her dressing room to say hey. We always found time to talk to one another. She was such a sweet soul.”

On her advice to Bobbi Kristina: “It’s a very, very tough time. Even though it’s still a loss. I lost my brother, she lost her mother. There’s still a difference, even though there’s a still a loss to a family. I don’t know what that’s like being so young. It was hard for me. It was very, very difficult for me. I didn’t want to accept it, it’s very difficult. You have to come to terms at some point. You have to actually give it up to God and it sounds so mean, but you have to move on. You can’t hold onto that because it can be very devastating. Sometimes therapy is the best thing.”

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