Amy Winehouse

English-born British singer-songwriter (1983–2011)

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
Amy Winehouse performing on 29 June 2007 at the Eurockéennes music festival in eastern France. Winehouse is looking into the crowd while singing sidelong into a handheld microphone. Her black hair is combed back in a relaxed style. Her tattooed shoulder is bare, and she is wearing large, chunky earrings.
Winehouse performing at the Eurockéennes Music Festival in June 2007
Born
Amy Jade Winehouse

(1983-09-14)14 September 1983
Died23 July 2011(2011-07-23) (aged 27)
Cause of deathAlcohol intoxication
Resting placeEdgwarebury Cemetery, Edgware, London
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Years active2000–2011
Spouse
Blake Fielder-Civil
(m. 2007; div. 2009)
Partners
ChildrenNo Children
Musical career
Genres
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • drums
Labels
WebsiteAmyWinehouse.com

Early life

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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

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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

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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

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She was found dead in 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.

References

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  1. "Amy Winehouse". Biography. 17 July 2020.
  2. "GRAMMY Rewind: 50th Annual GRAMMY Awards". GRAMMY.com. 8 February 2012.
  3. "Winehouse performs at Mandela concert". UPI.
  4. http://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/amys-lioness-queen-of-the-official-albums-chart/

Other websites

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