Whitney Houston, whose soaring voice lifted her to the top of the pop music world but whose personal decline was fuelled by decades of drug use, died on Saturday in a Beverly Hills hotel room.

She was 48. Houston joins the ranks of other popular singers and performers who died an early death after struggles with alcohol or drugs.

Here are some of them:

In the pic: Whitney Houston performs live during a concert at the O2 World on May 12, 2010 in Berlin, Germany