Los Angeles - The 54th annual Grammy Awards ceremony on Sunday night began with a tribute to pop superstar Whitney Houston, who was found dead on Saturday afternoon.
A clip of her was shown live to the audience at the Staples Center.
Host LL Cool J paid tribute to the late singer with a prayer: "There is no way around this. We've had a death in our family and so at least for me, for me, the only thing that feels right, is to begin with a prayer for a woman we loved, for our fallen sister, Whitney Houston."
"Heavenly Father, we thank you for sharing our sister Whitney with us. Today our thoughts are with her mother, her daughter and all of her loved ones. And although she is gone too soon, we remain truly blessed to have been touched by her beautiful spirit, and to have her lasting legacy of music to cherish and share forever. Amen," he said.
The program of the awards ceremony was changed at the last minute to pay tribute to Houston after the singer's sudden death.
The tribute featured a clip of one of the top vocalists singing her classic hit "I Will Always Love You" at the Grammys back in 1994. The star-studded audience responded with a standing ovation.
Houston, 48, was found dead at the Beverly Hills Hilton Hotel. Authorities believed Houston may have fallen asleep or lapsed into unconsciousness while taking a bath and drowned.
An autopsy was conducted Sunday which revealed she did have water in her lungs when she died, but the medical examiner needs to determine exactly how much before they can rule whether she died as a result of drowning, media reported.
The award-winning singer, who was also an actress, producer and model, was best known for her chart-topping single "I Will Always Love You" from the film "The Bodyguard" in 1992.
Her other big hits include "How Will I Know" and "Saving All My Love for You."
As one of the most successful pop singers in modern music history, Houston was remembered as the most awarded female vocalist of all time, garnering a total of 415 awards, including six Grammy Awards, 22 American Music Awards and countless other accolades, according to Guinness World Records.
Often referred to as the "Queen of Pop" or simply "the Voice," she was also one of the best-selling music artists in the world, having sold more than 170 million albums and singles.
