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Gospel singer Cece Winans revealed in a now viral video she refused an offer from Whitney Houston to sing on Houston's cover of Chaka Khan's 1978 hit "I'm Every Woman."
Winans said she did this on religious grounds during a recent sermon, according to reports from The Neighborhood Talk and Atlanta Black Star.
She explained she couldn't sing or appear in the video because the song's lyrics were "demonic."
"It started off with 'I cast a spell' and I'm not singing that."
That line actually comes in the fourth stanza:
"I can cast a spell of secrets you can tell
Mix a special brew, put fire inside of you
Anytime you feel danger or fear
Then instantly I will appear, 'cause"
You can see an excerpt from the sermon shared by The Neighborhood Talk here:
\u201cI love cece winans but this ain\u2019t it .\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
In the same sermon, Winans shared other music she also deemed demonic and talked about her decision.
"Y'all get hooked up on these beats, and it's like demonic. You're listening to demonic stuff and you're wondering why you don't know what's going on..."
"The biggest deception is that the devil make you think it's an in-between. Show me a scripture that says there's an in-between."
She did say Houston called her again for work on another song—“Count On Me.”
But she reaffirmed her reasoning for passing on Houston's first offer near the end of her sermon.
"I'm a believer first. I'm a believer who happens to sing."
Commenters flocked to the viral post which also made it to Twitter.
Some other Christians agreed with Winans' choice.
\u201c@legendofNippy It\u2019s cool y\u2019all don\u2019t wanna admit it but Cece is absolutely right \ud83d\udcaf but I forgot anything to do with God/Jesus or the Bible y\u2019all don\u2019t like \ud83e\udd2d but stay screaming y\u2019all spiritual\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
\u201c@legendofNippy Cece Winans is a Christian. This is not at all contradictory in terms of her faith which she's always been consistent about. Her words & actions are totally in line with her Christian beliefs. She ain't half steppin. She's keepin it real as a Christian. What's the issue?\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
\u201c@legendofNippy She\u2019s right. You can\u2019t serve two masters. You may not like it, but the girls that get it\u2026. Get it\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
Someone said Winans' choice makes sense, but only in the context she grew up in.
\u201c@legendofNippy Perhaps the song was too worldly for Cece to sing and that\u2019s clearly her choice\u2026she had her reasons..and if you grew up in a COGIC church you understand how strict there religion is..especially in the 70s,80s, 90s\u2026\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
However, many people were angry with Winans for seeming to put down her friend.
Especially since Houston, because she passed away, cannot defend herself.
\u201c@SemajTaughtU @legendofNippy THIS is the part that made me most uncomfortable. I would never throw \u201ca close friend\u201d who is no longer here under the bus like this.\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
\u201c@legendofNippy She called her sister friend then demonic in the same sentence. Christians can\u2019t even be nice to ppl who passed away hum\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
Someone pointed out the 'spell' Winans didn't want to sing about was a metaphor.
\u201c@legendofNippy Did these folks skip 7th grade English? There's a whole unit on metaphors.\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
Others shared how Winans' type of thinking in their own family members affected them.
\u201c@legendofNippy My dad is like this. Super talented singer/songwriter but refused to participate in a local competition bc it had the term \u201cidol\u201d in it. Literally afraid of words. That fear of success and the poverty with it often kept us from paying our bills on time.\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
Others stated this worldview reminded them of Christians they don't like.
\u201c@legendofNippy I love Cece but I really can't with Christians who think everything is demonic all the damn time.\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
Others came back to Winans seemingly calling her friend demonic.
\u201c@legendofNippy I promise there\u2019s a way to preach without punching down.\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
Finally, there were those who pointed out this sort of thinking might be why people are leaving the church.
\u201c@legendofNippy And they wonder why people are leaving the church in record numbers lmao\u201d— whit (@whit) 1677618383
Winans contributing or not, Houston's "I'm Every Woman" cover definitely took its place in music history anyway.