Whitney Houston’s Cousin Slams Kanye West For Using Photo Of Singer’s Drug-Filled Bathroom On Album Cover

Family of the late Whitney Houston are directing their anger towards Kanye West. The reason? The rapper used a photo of the singer’s drug-filled bathroom as the cover for Pusha T‘s new album DAYTONA, which he produced.

https://twitter.com/kanyewest/status/999771408258318338

Damon Elliott, Houston’s cousin, spoke to People about his reaction to West’s decision to spend $85,000 on the photo (which was first published by the National Enquirer in 2006) and turn it into album artwork. His daughter sent him a picture of DAYTONA, and then, he said, “I immediately got sick to my stomach because it took me right back to six years ago.”

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Elliott added, “I was actually in shock because I’m in the music business,” noting that he in fact worked with West on a Keyshia Cole song.

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He has stated that he would like an apology from West, as well as a promise to switch the cover to something else, explaining, “I just want him to tell me why he did it. What is the creative side of this? What’s the point? It shows no creativity.”

However, another member of Houston’s family sees it a little differently. In a statement to Good Morning America, her nephew Gary Michael Houston placed the blame more on the family member who shot the photograph and sold it to the Enquirer in the first place.

“The person who violated the trust of my aunt by taking the photo and selling it to tabloids for their own personal and/or financial gain is more of a travesty to me,” he said.

He also explained that he could understand the artistic merits of the decision: “Bottom line — [West and Pusha T] are artists and in this day and age, if they can afford to pay someone for usage of that photograph in order to convey a visual message to accompany their musicianship … then so be it.”