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Gary Michael Houston then defended West, 40, who produced Pusha T’s album, “Daytona,” and chose its cover art, which he revealed earlier this week on Twitter.

Pusha T, 41, previously told syndicated radio personality Angie Martinez that West paid $85,000 to obtain the rights to use the controversial photo for his protege's cover art.

“'Ye nor Push are the reasons this is a topic,” he said. “The conniving people who leaked it are. Anyone speaking out about this is a ‘dollar late and a day short.' The photo is public, it already happened...nobody came to her defense when she was alive and when it came out initially, so why champion the cause now?”

“In summation, I think I speak for rest of my immediate family when I say that we are focused on way more important things than an old photo,” Gary Michael Houston added, before promoting an upcoming documentary about the late singer called, \"Whitney.\"

\"PHOTO:
Rebecca Sapp/WireImage/Getty Images, FILE
PHOTO: Michael Houston, Gary Houston, Cissy Houston, Pat Houston and Donna Houston at Exhibit Launch Event: Whitney! at The GRAMMY Museum, August 15, 2012, in Los Angeles, California.
>

“The estate has an amazing documentary that is set to debut July 6 in the U.S. that gives insight about my aunt — the person and the icon. We are focused on keeping her legacy alive by acknowledging her talent and giving insight that may lead to understanding and empathy rather than the judgement and criticism she experienced while she was alive. Nothing else matters,” he concluded.

Earlier this week, Damon Elliott, the son of Houston's cousin Dionne Warwick said he was “shocked” by the photo.

The music producer told People magazine, \"To do something for a publicity stunt to sell records, it’s absolutely disgusting. It hurt my family and my daughter. It’s petty. It’s tacky.”

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