Ray J Talked about Relationship with Whitney Houston Just Days before Death

Ray J talked about his relationship with Whitney Houston during two separate interviews just days before the superstar singer died.

In an interview with The Insider on Feb. 10, Ray J opened up about his relationship with Whitney Houston - whom he was reportedly romantic with from 2007 to 2009. You know they blow this thing out of proportion, he said, referencing the rumors in the press regarding the two rekindling their relationship in recent weeks.

That's my friend. I've known her for years and years and years; and she's a friend of the family. So, when we go out it's just the next day it's everywhere and there are so many different stories. But that's my people, that's my friend.

You know what, I have a lot of love for her. And a lot of respect for her, he said. The interview pressed on about their romantic past and Ray J responded, I think that... I don't think that you can really say that. I just think that our friendship is something that people might not understand maybe because of the age different. We've always just been friends.

We hug. We laugh. We go out to dinner. We talk about different things in our lives. You know, she's a good person, he said.

We've always kept our relationship as private as we could. When we go out we try to keep our relationship as private as we could. You know when we go out, she's such an icon, it reaches the masses. But, for the most part, we've just been friends. And we've always kept everything hush-hush and private.

When asked how Whitney Houston was doing, Ray J said, [She's] great. Great, from what I know. But you will have to ask her, because she could tell you better than me.

The Insider asked if Ray J knew if Houston was past her demons and he declined to comment.

Ray J went on the show to talk about his new book Death of the Cheating Man. In the book he describes his relationship with KK, who is presumably Kim Kardashian, though he does not mention any specific names.

Ray-J mentioned Whitney Houston at a separate interview on Extra with Mario Lopez at The Grove just one day before her death.

Lopez asked if the two had rekindled their romance, after they were spotted dining together at Le Petit Four on Sunset Boulevard on Feb. 3. Ray J replied, We hang. It's Grammys weekend. She's in town, and we had dinner... She's doing good. Everybody's good.

As the world knows, Whitey Houston died the afternoon before the 2012 Grammy Awards inside the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where she was expected to attend Clive Davis' pre-Grammy party Saturday night.

Ray-J has been noticeably shaken since Houston's death. He was seen, bleary-eyed and dressed in a hooded sweatshirt, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel Saturday, looking distraught. He was at the hotel with three companions, who tried to console him over the sudden passing of his former girlfriend, reported The L.A. Times.

Whitney dead, Ray-J said multiple times. Whitney dead. We all gotta live with that. His friends attempted to console him but Ray-J was reportedly distraught. He made demands of the hotel's frazzled employees and quieted his friends with expletives, according to The L.A. Times. The singer also reportedly mentioned missed calls from Houston. We all gotta live with that.

When asked for a comment by reporters at the time, one of Ray-J's companions said, Nothing right now.

Ray J rushed to his sister Brandy's side after news of Houston's death. Brandy's birthday just so happened to fall on the day of Houston's passing. Though they celebrated at Ne-Yo's pre-Grammy Midnight Brunch at the Supperclub in Hollywood, the mood was decidedly somber. Ray-J sat next to his sister, dressed in a hooded sweatshirt and sunglasses, and kept his head down most of the night.