preview triggered a standing ovation, and the song Million Dollar Bill was among those that received critical acclaim. Finally on July 23, 2009, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, the final star-studded listening party took place that was attended by musical and Hollywood elites. Some of the attendees included Halle Berry, Jane Fonda, Stevie Wonder, Magic Johnson, Jackie Collins, Barry Manilow, Beverly Johnson, Diane Warren, Penny Marshall, Brian McKnight, and David Foster amongst others. Again the album was played almost in its entirety, receiving a standing ovation. Critical reception Critical response to I Look to You was generally positive with aggregated reviews on Metacritic awarding the album, 66/100. Most reviews praised the selection of songs and Houston's delivery. Digital Spy noted Houston's voice has changed, becoming deeper and huskier. Ann Powers in her LA Times review said, "Certain voices stand like monuments upon the landscape of 20th century pop, defining the architecture of their times, sheltering the dreams of millions and inspiring the climbing careers of countless imitators. Whitney Houston owns one of those voices." People magazine gave it three out of four stars, saying "Come Grammy night, Houston will leave just as she came." Slant Magazine critic Sal Cinquemani also wrote I Look to You finds Whitney struggling to hit notes and deliver phrases that should come effortlessly to such a seasoned vocalist; her vocal cords are plagued by edema, her voice reedy and lacking the crystalline clarity it once possessed on classics like "I Will Always Love You" and "I Have Nothing". Although critical of Houston's voice, Cinquemani also noted how her vocal change benefited the album: "[Houston] sounds alive, and seemingly happy to be. [...] The New Voice lives more contently in the midtempo numbers that allow her to sink into the grooves. [...] For the most part, I Look to You manages to sound completely contemporary without the use of guest rappers, dumbed-down lyrics, or slang." Likewise, Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly, who gave the album a torn B− rating, felt that Houston's huskier vocals lent an emotional intensity to the album: “Houston’s famous voice, which now sounds husky and glottal, as if her vocal cords were sent through a washer-dryer cycle with a handful of small rocks, brings a gravity that the album’s often generically worded ballads lack.” However, the critic criticized the album for its lack of insight on her struggles