(Cover) - EN Showbiz - Jordin Sparks put herself under "a lot of pressure" ahead of her performance at the Billboard Music Awards.

The 22-year-old singer paid tribute to the late Whitney Houston with an emotional rendition of I Will Always Love You at the ceremony yesterday.

She admitted feeling worried before she took to the stage.

"It's a lot of pressure I'm putting on myself, because I want to do it amazingly, but at the same time, whatever happens, I just want to be able to speak through the music," she told MTV News as she arrived at the event.

Jordin's rendition went down a storm with the audience, as did John Legend's version of The Greatest Love of All. Whitney's daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown was in the audience and was spotted wiping away tears.

Jordin grew close to Whitney on the set of their movie Sparkle, which was made shortly before the singer passed away.

"I put myself completely, 100 per cent onstage every time I perform," she explained before singing the track.

"It's just very special. I feel very honoured to be able to honour Whitney in this way and to sing one of her songs. I've actually never performed this song before ever. It's one of the songs I've always been like, 'Leave that alone,' so it's nerve-racking for me."

Bobbi accepted the Millennium award for her mother at last night's ceremony in Las Vegas. (C) Cover Media