Amy Winehouse
Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English jazz, soul and R&B singer and songwriter. She debuted with the well-received album Frank in 2003. Winehouse won five Grammy Awards for her 2006 album Back to Black. This made her the first British female to win five Grammys.[1] Winehouse had many uncles who were jazz musicians, and she was interested in jazz from a young age. She named her first album after Frank Sinatra. Her music was also influenced by girl groups of the 1960s.
Amy Winehouse | |
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 Winehouse performing at the Eurockéennes Music Festival in June 2007 | |
| Born | Amy Jade Winehouse 14 September 1983 Southgate, London, England |
| Died | 23 July 2011 (aged 27) Camden, London, England |
| Cause of death | Alcohol intoxication |
| Resting place | Edgwarebury Cemetery, Edgware, London |
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| Years active | 2000–2011 |
| Spouse(s) | Blake Fielder-Civil (m. 2007; div. 2009) |
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| Website | AmyWinehouse.com |
Early life
Amy Jade Winehouse was born to Jewish parents Janis and Mitch Winehouse. She was given her first guitar when she was 13 years old. When she was 14 she started writing songs. She'd often write music about her day to day experiences in a book given to her by father. It was later revealed that she used some of the songs she wrote as a teenager on her debut album Frank She went to Sylvia Young Theatre School and the BRIT School. Both schools have very notable alumni including soul-singer Adele and X-Factor contestant, Leona Lewis
Career
On 20 October 2003 Winehouse's first album Frank was released. She won an Ivor Novello Award for it.
On 30 October 2006 her second album Back to Black was released. Five singles were released from the album. The first single "Rehab" spent 57 weeks in the UK Singles Chart. It won Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 2008 Grammy Awards.[2] Winehouse sung on Mutya Buena's 2007 single "B Boy Baby". Winehouse performed at Nelson Mandela's 90th Birthday Party concert at London's Hyde Park on 27 June 2008.[3] The next day she performed at the Glastonbury Festival.
In 2011 Lioness: Hidden Treasures, a collection of Winehouse's unreleased songs, was released. It reached No.1 in the UK Albums Chart.[4] Winehouse sung on the song "Cherry Wine" on Nas' 2012 album Life Is Good.
Personal life
She married Blake Fielder-Civil in 2007. They had legal troubles that resulted in criminal convictions for both of them. He was sent to prison. They divorced in 2009.
Death and legacy
She was found dead her flat in Camden, north London, on the afternoon by accidental alcohol poisoning on July 23, 2011 after years of drug and alcohol addiction. This made her a member of the 27 Club, a group of popular musicians who have died at that age, often due to drug or alcohol abuse. After Winehouse's death her dad published a book about her life called Amy: My Daughter. All of the money made from the book was given to the Amy Winehouse Foundation.
Amy Winehouse Media
Winehouse performing live in July 2004
Winehouse at the Avalon in Boston, Massachusetts in 2007
Winehouse with Mick Jagger at the Isle of Wight Festival on the Isle of Wight, England where she sang "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" with the Rolling Stones on 10 June 2007.
Winehouse backstage with her band in March 2009
Winehouse performing in Brazil in January 2011, one of her last concerts before her death
The first act on Winehouse's record label was her goddaughter Dionne Bromfield.
Winehouse was influenced by soul girl groups such as the Ronettes, whose look she imitated.
Winehouse with her Star of David medallion in 2008
Tributes outside Amy Winehouse's home at Camden Square in the days following her death
References
- ↑ "Amy Winehouse". Biography. 17 July 2020.
- ↑ "GRAMMY Rewind: 50th Annual GRAMMY Awards". GRAMMY.com. 8 February 2012.
- ↑ "Winehouse performs at Mandela concert". UPI.
- ↑ http://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/amys-lioness-queen-of-the-official-albums-chart/