Ray J has denied rumors linking him to Whitney Houston's 2012 death, calling them false and hurtful. He said she was very important to him. Whitney died from accidental drowning caused by heart disease and cocaine use on February 11, 2012. Ray J, whose real name is William Ray Norwood Jr., was often seen with her after her 2007 divorce from Bobby Brown.This led to the speculation that the rapper had something to do with Houston's death. However, he has slammed such rumors in an interview with Cam Newton, published on the latter's YouTube channel on July 26. He said:"She was one of the most important people to me. N***as is saying that I was in the room when she died. Bro, that's the biggest cap I've ever heard."The rapper also added that he had been silent on the matter for years despite facing rumors and allegations. However, he feels that he has to speak up, as he added:“I didn’t care about what people were saying at first. It’s not my truth. It’s just certain times when narratives are going to the moon. That’s not true. You have to go and you have to shut certain things down, right? The way they made that seem is so haunting to me.”Norwood Jr. also added that people comment on his Instagram posts that he "killed" Whitney Houston, which he finds disrespectful.Also Read: Ray J addresses Kim Kardashian's scandalous s*x tape from 2007, Loren LoRosa reactsRay J explains he wasn't near Whitney Houston when she diedBET Experience Fan Fest - Day 2 (Image Source: Getty)During the aforementioned conversation, the rapper also shared that the couple were planning to announce they were dating before the actor's death. He asserted that he was in San Diego when Houston died and nowhere near her."The Clive Davis event was the next day. We were going to go there together and we were going to make the announcement that were were [dating]," he said.He also expressed his bond with the actor, saying:"That was my people, bro. ... I barely speak on Whitney. She's Whitney Houston. Yes, that's Whitney Houston, but she's Whitney to me. To me it's just so distasteful for somebody to have to tell somebody something that the other person can't respond to."Also Read: Ray Daniels compares DDG and Halle Bailey's situation to Whitney Houston - Bobby Brown's and Rihanna - Chris Brown's relationshipsAs per Complex, Suge Knight had alleged that Ray J provided drugs to Houston, which eventually led to the latter's death. While the rapper hasn't directly responded to Knight, he did speak about the allegations in June this year.While appearing on a Twitch stream with Moniece Slaughter, he said:"So it's like, 'What are y'all talking about?' I gotta literally come out and explain what it really was, which is super disrespectful to Whitney. But now it's getting out of control."He added that the "narratives" and rumors are getting "out of control", asserting that they are distasteful and wrong.Also Read: "Cancelling a night in Manchester to make a TikTok" — Internet reacts to Drake and Central Cee appearing in a TikTok on their song ‘Which One’