*Whitney Houston had a special bond with her mother Cissy. She and Bobbi Kristina seem to share the same bond.

And while Cissy Houston was grieving in a way that may have been too deep for words, she still managed to put together very beautiful words for the Homegoing program.

Her words, so eloquent, are a telling account of a mother’s clairvoyance in her relationship with her child. She said she knew she wouldn’t have her daughter long.

She wrote:

You always gave without expecting anything in return and our love was the force that multiplied these blessings higher and higher. I never told you that when you were born … (read more here)

Monica Raymund in a scene from The Good Wife

*Monica Raymund, whose recurring character on CBS’ “The Good Wife” just quit over a demotion at the DA office on Sunday’s episode, has been cast as one of the leads in NBC’s new drama pilot “Chicago Fire,” reports Deadline.com.

On Wolf Films and Universal TV’s action-driven drama about the complex and heroic men and women of the Chicago Fire Department, Raymund will play Gabriella, a fast-thinking and fearless paramedic committed to her job.

As previously reported, Eamonn Walker was the first to be cast, and will play Chief Walter Boden, a former Golden Gloves champ who is mulling retirement.

*Politicians are surrounded by those who would whisper promises of enormous fortunes to merely support them and their corporations.

The politicians that don’t fall prey to these lobbyists are few and far between. The money that surrounds politicians is plentiful and has numerous sources.

For instance, President Obama’s bailout money.

The President’s bank bailout was not celebrated by most and one case of unethical behavior sprung up against Maxine Waters.

She has been investigated for the last two years on charges

(more…)

Michelle Obama and Maya Angelou speak during the BET Honors 2012 at the Warner Theatre on Jan. 14, 2012 in Washington, DC

*Poet Maya Angelou is said to be on the mend following a brief illness that forced her to cancel a planned speech in Texas.

Angelou’s lecture agent David LaCamera said Tuesday the 83-year-old poet was scheduled to speak on Wednesday at Texas Women’s University in Denton, but came down with an illness that left her in the hospital for three days.

LaCamera declined to describe the nature of the illness, but said Tuesday that Angelou is resting at home in Winston-Salem, N.C., and is unable to travel.

He says her doctor told her that she’s on the road a lot and has to slow down for a few days.

*CNN was the most watched network of all cable news competitors in the ratings for Whitney Houston’s funeral, averaging five million viewers during its coverage of the singer’s Baptist memorial on Saturday, according to Nielsen.

The event was televised without commercial breaks from 12:15 to 3:45 p.m., resulting in a spike of 5.4 million viewers between 1:30 to 1:45 p.m. On a normal Saturday, without a unifying televised event, CNN draws about 10 times less viewers, notes the Hollywood Reporter.

Meanwhile, the network’s softer-news sibling HLN averaged 1.42 million, followed by Fox News (1.38 million) and MSNBC (709,000). Ratings for E! and BET, which also carried the funeral, were not released at press time.

*As previously reported, Robin Thicke paid tribute to Whitney Houston by sharing a cover of the late singer’s “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” over the weekend, recording the song with just a piano and vocals. [Scroll down to listen.]

Furthermore, he changed the lyrics – which were originally written in third person – to first, in order to make it a purely personal tribute.

“I was thinking about Whitney and how incredible she was and remembered I had recorded this song years ago but never released it,” he told MTV News.  ”When I listened to it again, I was overcome by emotion, because the lyrics express everything I’m feeling right now.”

“That’s what was so special about Whitney, she had an amazing ability to connect to all of us and at the same time make us feel inspired,” he continued. “We love Whitney Houston and always will.”

Rachel Crow at the People's Choice Awards, held at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles (Jan. 11, 2012)

*Rachel Crow, the 14-year-old who famously went into hysterics when she was voted off of “The X Factor,” has scored a talent deal with Nickelodeon that includes starring in her own musical comedy series pilot.  In addition, she has been signed by Sony Music-owned Columbia Records in partnership with her “X Factor” coach Simon Cowell’s company, Syco.

“It’s been amazing,” Crow tells The Hollywood Reporter. “A couple days after the elimination I just found myself sitting home asking myself, ‘What am I going to do now?’ And I never would’ve thought that this is what I was going do now. So, it’s pretty amazing. I’m very thankful and I feel very blessed to have all this.”

To get her feet wet, Nickelodeon has also cast Crow in a recurring role on the network’s new comedy series, “Fred: The Show,” starring Lucas Cruikshank. She is already on-set shooting the role of Starr, an eccentric girl who acts and sings and, as her name indicates, wants to be famous. She will appear in at least five episodes airing in the spring.

“Rachel is an original,” Nickelodeon’s Talent Strategy and West Coast Operations EVP Paula Kaplan says. “She’s funny, genuine and has raw talent and a passion for performing. We’re delighted to be home to her first acting project and think she is poised to join the ranks of our next generation of Nick stars.”

She plans to begin work on her first album later this year for Columbia Records, which already houses the likes of Beyonce, Adele, Celine Dione, and Barbra Streisand.

“Columbia was awesome for me. This is the top, which is really cool,” Crow says excitedly. “Beyonce and Adele. And I’m in the same family as them, which is really awesome.”

As for the album she’s planning to record, Crow says she wants her music to be “spunky and there’s definitely gonna be some high notes in there. And it’s just gonna be me.”

The news of Crow’s signing came the same day THR’s sources tell us that runner-up Josh Krajcik is working on his debut album and has landed a deal with Sony, as well. Other Season 1 graduates who’ve locked down label deals at Sony include Chris Rene, Astro, Marcus Canty and, of course, winner Melanie Amaro who also pocketed $5 million.

*When Mick Jagger held out his mic to the President of the United States  during a Black History Month blues jam at the White House last night, the audience in the East Room got another dose of Barack Obama carrying a tune.

Obama’s surprise performance came at the end of the playlist when the concert featuring blues all-stars of the past, present and future turned to “Sweet Home Chicago,” the blues anthem of Obama’s home town.

Buddy Guy prodded the president, saying he’d heard him sing part of an Al Green tune recently, and adding, “You gotta keep it up.” Then Jagger handed over the mic, and Obama seemed compelled to comply.

“Come on, baby don’t you want to go,” the president sang out twice, handing off the mic to B.B. King momentarily, and then taking it back to tack on “Sweet Home Chicago” at the end.

With that, he grabbed the hand of his wife Michelle and the two left the East Room to cheers.

President Barack Obama speaks at a White House event titled In Performance at the White House: Red, White and Blues Feb. 21, 2012 in Washington, DC

Earlier, Obama kicked off the special night by saying that sometimes there are downsides to being the president. You can’t just go for a walk, for example. And then there are the times that more than make up for all those frustrations, he said, like Tuesday night, when Jagger, King, Jeff Beck and other musical giants came by the house to sing the blues.

“I guess things even out a little bit,” Obama joked. “This music speaks to something universal. No one goes through life without both joy and pain, triumph and sorrow. The blues gets all of that, sometimes with just one lyric or one note. “

King, 86, arrived in a wheelchair but rose tall to kick off the night with a raucous “Let the Good Times Roll,” quickly joined by other members of the ensemble. And he followed with “The Thrill is Gone.”

From there, Obama and Michelle were swaying in their seats and singing along to an all-hits playlist including “St. James Infirmary” and “Let Me Love You.”

Beck slowed things down with an instrumental “Brush With the Blues,” as anticipation built for the arrival of Jagger, who did not disappoint.

The longtime Rolling Stones frontman delivered on “I Can’t Turn You Loose” and then teamed up with Beck on “Commit a Crime.” Jagger got the president and his wife up out of their seats, swaying and clapping to the music, and picked up the pace with “Miss You,” performed with Shemekia Copeland and Susan Tedeschi.

Obama was clearly savoring the moment, closing his eyes at times and nodding his head as he lip-synced the words.

The president rose at the end to introduce the ensemble as the “White House Blues All-Stars” for the final song of the night, “Sweet Home Chicago.”

In advance of the concert, Grammy-winner Keb Mo had joked during a rehearsal break that Obama himself would perform, and there could even be a record in the works. He joked that Obama’s record would be called, “After the second term, now I can finally get my groove on.”

The lineup for Tuesday’s concert spanned multiple generations, from legends like King and Guy to young faces such as 26-year-old Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews and Gary Clark Jr., whose style blends hip hop, contemporary soul and indie rock. Also performing were Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks, with actress Taraji P. Henson as the program host and Booker T. Jones as music director and band leader.

The blues concert will be part of the “In Performance at the White House” series that airs on PBS. This one, designed to recognize Black History Month, will be broadcast on Monday on PBS stations and aired later on American Forces Network.

*Maya Angelou was scheduled to appear at Texas Woman’s University, but canceled last minute due to an illness.

Details about the poet’s sudden sickness have not been revealed, but the university hopes to reschedule her visit for sometime this semester.

In the meantime, the activist and artist has been very busy lately with hosting a radio special on the Civil Rights Era.

That’s because the actor has been ordered to write a big ol’ fat check to a woman he’s accused of being an evil racist … his wife Michelle, according to TMZ.

Howard was in L.A. County Superior Court (on Tuesday) to deal with his exceptionally nasty divorce from Michelle Ghent Howard … and was ordered to shell out more than $50,000 to hold her over until they hammer out a long-term arrangement.

Here’s the breakdown … the judge ruled that Michelle needs:

– $10k in temporary support for rent, food, etc.

– $20k so she can pay her lawyers

– $20k so she can pay her accountants

– and $1,800 per month for her Range Rover car payments

Terrence has to fork over the dough within 30 days.

As TMZ previously reported, Terrence HATES Michelle with a passion … claiming she often called him a “n**ger” … tried to extort him … and even threatened to have him killed by “The Russians.”

Michelle also HATES Terrence … and claims he violently assaulted her on numerous occasions since they tied the knot back in 2010.

Both sides are due back in court in 60 days. Bet they can’t wait.