Amy Winehouse
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Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and businesswoman. She is known for her distinctive contralto vocals, expressive and autobiographical songwriting, and eclectic blend of genres such as rhythm and blues, soul, and jazz. Her music, fashion and highly publicised personal life made her an influential figure in popular culture.
Born to a Jewish family in Enfield, London, Winehouse grew up in a jazz-influenced household. She was a member of the National Youth Jazz Orchestra in her youth, recording several songs before signing a publishing deal with EMI. After a friend passed her demo to a music executive, Winehouse signed with Island Records in 2002. Her debut studio album, Frank (2003), was commercially successful in the UK and drew critical acclaim for its mature songwriting and jazz-imbued production. Its lead single, "Stronger Than Me", earned the singer an Ivor Novello Award.
Winehouse's second studio album, Back to Black (2006), was an international critical and commercial success, and became one of the best-selling albums of all time. Its lead single, "Rehab", was a worldwide top-ten song and won her a second Ivor Novello Award. At the 50th Annual Grammy Awards in 2008, Winehouse won five awards, tying the then-record for the most Grammys won by a female artist in a single night and becoming the first British woman to win five Grammys. Her wins included three of the "Big Four" categories—Best New Artist, and Record of the Year and Song of the Year for "Rehab"—along with Best Pop Vocal Album.
Winehouse's career was often overshadowed by substance abuse, mental illness, and addiction, culminating in her death from alcohol poisoning at her Camden Square home in London at the age of 27. Her brother believed that bulimia was also a factor. Winehouse's life and career were depicted in the documentary Amy (2015) and dramatised in the biopic Back to Black (2024). Publications such as Rolling Stone and VH1 have ranked her amongst the greatest artists in history. In 2025, Back to Black was preserved in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress.
Early life
Amy Jade Winehouse was born at Chase Farm Hospital in Gordon Hill in Enfield, London, on 14 September 1983.Template:Sfnm She was born to Jewish parents:Template:Sfn her father, Mitchell "Mitch" Winehouse, was an amateur singer and taxi driver;Template:Sfn her mother, Janis "Jane" Winehouse (née Seaton), was a pharmacist.Template:Sfnm She had a brother named Alex, who was three years older than her.Template:Sfn Winehouse was raised in Southgate, London;Template:Sfn when she was five she began attending Osidge Primary School.Template:Sfn She then started her secondary education at Ashmole School, where her grades were "surprisingly good" according to her mother.Template:Sfn As a child, Winehouse attended a weekly cheder, a Jewish primary school. In a later interview, she expressed her dislike for the school, recalling that she often begged her father to let her stay home and felt she "learned nothing about being Jewish" from attending.Template:Sfn
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Many of Winehouse's maternal uncles were professional jazz musicians.Template:Sfn Her paternal grandmother, Cynthia, had been a singer and dated jazz saxophonist Ronnie Scott.Template:Sfn Cynthia, along with Winehouse's parents, nurtured Winehouse's early interest in jazz.<ref name="d341">Template:Cite web</ref> Mitch would frequently sing and play the songs of jazz musicians like Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett around the house, and when reprimanded at school, Winehouse would sing "Fly Me to the Moon" before seeing the headmistress.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Her parents separated when she was nine, after which she lived with her mother and her boyfriend in Whetstone, London, and spent weekends with her father and his girlfriend in Hatfield Heath, Essex.<ref>Template:Multiref</ref>
In 1992, Cynthia encouraged Winehouse to attend the Susi Earnshaw Theatre School, where she spent Saturdays developing her singing, acting and tap dancing.Template:Sfnm With her childhood friend Juliette Ashby, she formed a short-lived rap duo called SweetTemplate:Nbsp'n'Template:NbspSour.Template:Sfn Winehouse later enroled at the Sylvia Young Theatre School; at her audition she sang "On the Sunny Side of the Street".Template:Sfn Reports that she was expelled at 14 for "not applying herself" and for piercing her nose were denied by both Sylvia Young and her father, who clarified that she simply transferred schools at 15.<ref>Template:Multiref</ref> One of her teachers there recalled her as a skilled writer, saying she could have become a novelist or journalist.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She later attended the Mount School in Mill Hill and brifely went to the BRIT School in Selhurst, Croydon.<ref>Template:Multiref</ref> After experimenting with her brother's guitar, Winehouse purchased her own and soon began writing her own songs.Template:Sfn Around the same time, she worked as an entertainment journalist for the World Entertainment News Network and was a vocalist for the National Youth Jazz Orchestra.Template:Sfnm Her best friend, soul singer Tyler James, later sent a demo tape of hers to an A&R scout to help kickstart her professional career.<ref name="d341"/>
Career
2002–2005: Career beginnings and Frank
Winehouse was signed to Simon Fuller's 19 Management in 2002 and was initially paid £250 a week against future earnings.Template:Sfn While being developed by the management company, Winehouse was kept as a recording industry secret,<ref name="HQ">Template:Cite web</ref> although she was a regular jazz standards singer at the Cobden Club.Template:Sfn Her future A&R representative at Island, Darcus Beese, heard of her by chance when the manager of the Lewinson Brothers showed him some productions of his clients, which featured Winehouse as key vocalist. When he asked who the singer was, the manager told him he was not allowed to say. Having decided that he wanted to sign her, it took several months of asking around for Beese to eventually discover who the singer was. However, by that time Winehouse had already recorded a number of songs, signed a publishing deal with EMI, and formed a working relationship with producer Salaam Remi.<ref name="HQ"/>
Beese introduced Winehouse to his boss, Island head Nick Gatfield, who shared his enthusiasm in signing the young artist. Winehouse was signed to Island while rival interest in her had started to build with representatives of EMI and Virgin Records starting to make moves. Beese told HitQuarters that he felt the excitement over an artist who was an atypical pop star for the time was due to a backlash against reality TV music shows, whose audiences starved for fresh, genuine young talent.<ref name="HQ"/>
Winehouse's debut album, Frank, was released on 20 October 2003. Produced mainly by Salaam Remi, many of the songs were influenced by jazz and, apart from two covers, Winehouse co-wrote every song. The album received wide critical acclaim with compliments given to the "cool, critical gaze" in its lyrics.<ref name="BBC"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Frank">Template:Cite web</ref> Winehouse's voice was compared with those of Sarah Vaughan and Macy Gray, among others.<ref name="Frank" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The album entered the upper reaches of the UK Albums Chart in 2004 when it was nominated for the Brit Awards in the categories of British Female Solo Artist and British Urban Act. It went on to achieve platinum sales.<ref name="AW">Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Sfn Later in 2004, she and Remi won the Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song, for their first single together, "Stronger Than Me".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The album was also shortlisted for the 2004 Mercury Music Prize. In the same year, she performed at the Glastonbury Festival (on the Jazz World stage), the V Festival and the Montreal International Jazz Festival. After the release of the album, Winehouse commented that she was "only 80 percent behind [the] album" because Island Records had overruled her preferences for the songs and mixes to be included.<ref name="C&D">Template:Cite news</ref>
2006–2008: Back to Black and international success
After the release of her first jazz-influenced album, Winehouse's focus shifted to the girl groups of the 1950s and 1960s. Winehouse hired New York singer Sharon Jones's longtime band, the Dap-Kings, to back her up in the studio and on tour.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Mitch Winehouse relates in Amy, My Daughter how fascinating watching her process was: her perfectionism in the studio and how she would put what she had sung on a CD and play it in his taxi outside to know how most people would hear her music.Template:Sfn In May 2006, Winehouse's demo tracks such as "You Know I'm No Good" and "Rehab" appeared on Mark Ronson's New York City radio show on East Village Radio. These were some of the first new songs played on the radio after the release of "Pumps" and both were slated to appear on her second album. The 11-track album, completed in five months,Template:Sfn was produced entirely by Salaam Remi and Ronson, with the production credits being split between them. Ronson said in a 2010 interview that he liked working with Winehouse because she was blunt when she did not like his work.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She in turn thought that when they first met, he was a sound engineer and that she was expecting an older man with a beard.Template:Sfn
Promotion of Back to Black soon began and, in early October 2006, Winehouse's official website was relaunched with a new layout and clips of previously unreleased songs.<ref name="AW"/> Back to Black was released in the UK on 30 October 2006. It went to number one on the UK Albums Chart for two weeks in January 2007, dropping then climbing back for several weeks in February. In the US, it entered at number seven on the Billboard 200. It was the best-selling album in the UK of 2007, selling 1.85Template:Nbspmillion copies over the course of the year.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The first single released from the album was the Ronson-produced "Rehab". The song reached the top ten in the UK and the US.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Time magazine named "Rehab" the Best Song of 2007. Writer Josh Tyrangiel praised Winehouse for her confidence, saying, "What she is is mouthy, funny, sultry, and quite possibly crazy" and "It's impossible not to be seduced by her originality. Combine it with production by Mark Ronson that references four decades worth of soul music without once ripping it off, and you've got the best song of 2007."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The album's second single and lead single in the US, "You Know I'm No Good", was released in January 2007 with a remix featuring rap vocals by Ghostface Killah. It ultimately reached number 18 on the UK singles chart. The title track, "Back to Black", was released in the UK in April 2007 and peaked at number 25, but was more successful across mainland Europe.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> "Tears Dry on Their Own" and "Love Is a Losing Game" were also released as singles, but failed to achieve the same level of success.<ref name="q282">Template:Cite web</ref>
A deluxe edition of Back to Black was also released on 5 November 2007 in the UK. The bonus disc features B-sides, rare, and live tracks, as well as "Valerie". Winehouse's debut DVD I Told You I Was Trouble: Live in London was released the same day in the UK and 13 November in the US. It includes a live set recorded at London's Shepherd's Bush Empire and a 50-minute documentary charting the singer's career over the previous four years.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> Frank was released in the United States on 20 November 2007 to positive reviews.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The album debuted at number 61 on the Billboard 200 chart.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In addition to her own album, she collaborated with other artists on singles. Winehouse was a vocalist on the song "Valerie" on Ronson's solo album Version. The song peaked at number two in the UK upon its October single release. "Valerie" was nominated for a 2008 Brit Award for British Single of the Year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Her work with ex-Sugababe Mutya Buena, "B Boy Baby", was released on 17 December 2007. It served as the fourth single from Buena's debut album, Real Girl.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Winehouse was also in talks of working with Missy Elliott for her album Block Party.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Winehouse promoted the release of Back to Black with headline performances in late 2006, including a Little Noise Sessions charity concert at the Union Chapel in Islington, London.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> On 31 December 2006, Winehouse appeared on Jools Holland's Annual Hootenanny and performed a cover of Marvin Gaye's "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" along with Paul Weller and Holland's Rhythm and Blues Orchestra. She also performed Toots and the Maytals' "Monkey Man". At his request, actor Bruce Willis introduced Winehouse before her performance of "Rehab" at the 2007 MTV Movie Awards in Universal City, California, on 3 June 2007.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> During the summer of 2007, she performed at various festivals, including Glastonbury Festival<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Lollapalooza in Chicago.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
The rest of her tour, however, did not go as well. In November 2007, the opening night of a 17-date tour was marred by booing and walkouts at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham. A critic for the Birmingham Mail said it was "one of the saddest nights of my life ... I saw a supremely talented artist reduced to tears, stumbling around the stage and, unforgivably, swearing at the audience."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Other concerts ended similarly, with, for example, fans at her Hammersmith Apollo performance in London saying that she "looked highly intoxicated throughout,"<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> until she announced on 27 November 2007, that her performances and public appearances were cancelled for the remainder of the year, citing her doctor's advice to take a complete rest. A statement issued by concert promoter Live Nation blamed "the rigours involved in touring and the intense emotional strain that Amy has been under in recent weeks" for the decision.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Mitch Winehouse wrote about her nervousness before public performances in his 2012 book, Amy, My Daughter.Template:Sfn On 13 January 2008, Back to Black held the number-one position on the Billboard Pan European charts for the third consecutive week.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
On 10 February 2008, Winehouse received five Grammy Awards, winning in the following categories: Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for the single "Rehab", and Best Pop Vocal Album.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The singer also earned a Grammy as Best New Artist, earning her an entry in the 2009 edition of the Guinness Book of Records for Most Grammy Awards won by a British Female Act.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Additionally, Back to Black was nominated for Album of the Year.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Ronson's work with her won the Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, in the non-classical category.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She ended her acceptance speech for Record of the Year with, "This is for London because Camden Town ain't burning down," in reference to the 2008 Camden Market fire.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Performing "You Know I'm No Good" and "Rehab" via satellite from London's Riverside Studios at 3 a.m. UK time, she couldn't be at the ceremony in Los Angeles as her visa approval had not been processed in time.<ref name="Mitch">Template:Harvnb</ref>
After the Grammys, the album's sales increased, catapulting Back to Black to number two on the US Billboard 200, after it initially peaked in the seventh position.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 20 February 2008, Winehouse performed at the 2008 Brit Awards at Earls Court in London, performing "Valerie" with Mark Ronson, followed by "Love Is a Losing Game". She urged the crowd to "make some noise for my Blake."<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> A special deluxe edition of Back to Black topped the UK album charts on 2 March 2008. Meanwhile, the original edition of the album was ranked at number 30 in its 68th week on the charts, while Frank charted at number 35.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
In Paris, she performed what was described as a "well-executed 40-minute" set at the opening of a Fendi boutique in early March.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> By 12 March, the album had sold a total of 2,467,575 copies—318,350 copies had been sold in the previous 10 weeks—putting the album on the UK's top-10 best-selling albums of the 21st century for the first time.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> On 7 April, Back to Black was in the top position of the pan-European charts for the sixth consecutive and thirteenth aggregate week.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Amy Winehouse – The Girl Done Good: A Documentary Review, a 78-minute DVD, was released on 14 April 2008. The documentary features interviews with those who knew her at a young age, people who helped her achieve success, jazz music experts, and music and pop culture specialists.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
At the 2008 Ivor Novello Awards in May, Winehouse became the first-ever artist to receive two nominations for the top award: Best Song Musically & Lyrically. She won the award for "Love Is a Losing Game" and was nominated for "You Know I'm No Good".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> "Rehab", a Novello winner for best contemporary song in 2006, also received a 2008 nomination for best-selling British song.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Winehouse was also nominated for a 2008 MTV Europe Music Award in the Act of the Year category.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Although her father, manager and various members of her touring team reportedly tried to dissuade her, Winehouse performed at the Rock in Rio Lisboa festival in Portugal in May 2008.<ref name="RS"/> Although the set was plagued by a late arrival and problems with her voice, the crowd warmed to her. In addition to her own material she performed two Specials covers.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Winehouse performed at Nelson Mandela's 90th Birthday Party concert at London's Hyde Park on 27 June 2008,<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> and the next day at the Glastonbury Festival.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 12 July, at the Oxegen Festival in Ireland she performed a well-received 50-minute set<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> which was followed the next day by a 14-song set at T in the Park.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
On 16 August, she played at the Staffordshire leg of the V Festival, and the following day played the Chelmsford leg of the festival. Organisers said that Winehouse attracted the biggest crowds of the festival. Audience reaction was reported as mixed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 6 September, Winehouse was Bestival's Saturday headliner, where she started 40 minutes late and was on stage for 35 minutes, before her performance was terminated because of a curfew.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
A clip of Winehouse's music was included in the "Roots and Influences" area that looked at connections between different artists at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Annex NYC, which opened in December 2008. One thread started with Billie Holiday, continued with Aretha Franklin and Mary J. Blige, and then finished with Winehouse.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Back to Black was the world's seventh-biggest-selling album of 2008.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The album's sales meant that the market performance of Universal Music Group's recorded music division did not drop to levels experienced by the overall music market.<ref name="Times">Template:Cite news</ref> The album has sold over 20 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
2009–2011: Final projects before death
In a 2009 poll of U.S. residents conducted for VisitBritain by Harris Interactive, one-fifth of the participants indicated they had listened to Winehouse's music during the previous year.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> She performed with Rhythms del Mundo on their cover of the Sam Cooke song "Cupid" for an Artists Project Earth benefit album released in July that year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Winehouse and Ronson contributed a cover of Lesley Gore's "It's My Party" to the Quincy Jones tribute album Q Soul Bossa Nostra, released in November 2010.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She had agreed to form a group with Questlove of the Roots, but her problems obtaining a visa delayed their working together. Salaam Remi had already created some material with Winehouse as part of the project.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to The Times, Universal Music pressed her for new material in 2008, but as of 2 September that year she had not been near a recording studio.<ref name="Times"/> In late October, Winehouse's spokesman was quoted as saying that Winehouse had not been given a deadline to complete her third album, for which she was learning to play drums.<ref name="Nov">Template:Cite web</ref>
In May 2009, Winehouse returned to performing at a jazz festival in Saint Lucia amid torrential downpours and technical difficulties. During her set, it was reported she was unsteady on her feet and had trouble remembering lyrics. She apologised to the crowd for being "bored" and ended the set in the middle of a song.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> During her stay in Saint Lucia, however, she worked on new music with Remi. On 23 August that year, Winehouse sang with the Specials at the V Festival on their songs "You're Wondering Now" and "Ghost Town".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Island claimed that a new album would be due for release in 2010. Island co-president Darcus Beese said, "I've heard a couple of song demos that have absolutely floored me."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In July 2010, Winehouse was quoted as saying her next album would be released no later than January 2011, saying: "It's going to be very much the same as my second album, where there's a lot of jukebox stuff and songs that are... just jukebox, really." Ronson, however, said at that time that he had not started to record the album.<ref name="Guardian">Template:Cite news</ref> She performed "Valerie" with Ronson at a movie premiere but forgot some of the song's lyrics.<ref name="Guardian"/> In October, Winehouse performed a four-song set to promote her fashion line. In December 2010, she played a 40-minute concert at a Russian oligarch's party in Moscow, with the tycoon hand-selecting the songs.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In January 2011, Winehouse played five dates in Brazil, with opening acts of Janelle Monáe and Mayer Hawthorne. While performing in Florianópolis, Winehouse forgot the lyrics of her songs several times and had to be aided by the public and her band. During the concert, she only drank from a water bottle, but even so, on two occasions, she left the stage in the midst of the show for a period of about five minutes. Upon her return, the crowd showed strong compassion for her and praised Winehouse for continuing the performance.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The following month she cut a performance in Dubai short following booing from the audience. Winehouse was reported to be tired, distracted and "tipsy" during the performance.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 18 June 2011, Winehouse started her 12-leg European tour in Belgrade. Local media described her performance as a scandal and disaster; she was booed off the stage due to her apparently being too drunk to perform. Serbian defence minister Dragan Šutanovac called Winehouse's performances "a huge shame and a disappointment".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> It was reported that she was unable to remember the city she was in, the lyrics of her songs or the names of the members of her band.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The local press also claimed that Winehouse was forced to perform by her bodyguards, who did not allow her to leave the stage when she tried to do so.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She then pulled out of performances in Istanbul and Athens, which had been scheduled for the following week.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 21 June, it was announced that she had cancelled all shows of her tour and would be given "as long as it takes" to sort herself out.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Winehouse's last public appearance took place at Camden's Roundhouse on 20 July 2011, when she made a surprise appearance on stage to support her goddaughter Dionne Bromfield, who was singing "Mama Said" with the Wanted.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Winehouse died three days later. Her last recording was a duet with American singer Tony Bennett for his album Duets II, released on 20 September 2011.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Their single from the album, "Body and Soul", was released on 14 September 2011 on MTV and VH1 to commemorate what would have been her 28th birthday.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Other ventures
Activism and philanthropy
Throughout her life, Winehouse donated her money, music and time to numerous charities and causes, particularly those concerned with children.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She joined a campaign to stop a block of flats being built beside the George Tavern, a famous London East End music venue. Campaign supporters feared the residential development would end the spot's lucrative sideline as a film and photo location, on which it relies to survive.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> As part of a breast cancer awareness campaign, Winehouse appeared in a revealing photograph for the April 2008 issue of Easy Living magazine.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In 2009, she appeared on a CD called Classics alongside musicians such as the Rolling Stones, the Killers and many Cuban musicians to raise awareness of climate change.
Winehouse loaned a vintage dress used in her video for "Tears Dry on Their Own" as well as a DVD to the British Music Experience, a new museum dedicated to the history of British pop music.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The museum, located at the O2 Arena in London, opened on 9 March 2009.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In March 2011, Winehouse donated over £20,000 worth of clothes to a local charity shop in London.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
A Caribbean man, Julian Jean DeBaptiste, revealed that Winehouse had paid for his urgent surgery costing £4,000 during her stay in Saint Lucia in 2009. "I had surgery on 1 July 2009... it cost a fortune and Amy paid for the whole thing. I tried to thank her but she just hugged me and told me not to say anything. Her generosity gave me my life back."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Business
Winehouse had an estimated £10m fortune, tying her for tenth place in the 2008 The Sunday Times listing of the wealth of musicians under age 30.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The following year her fortune had dropped to an estimated £5m.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Her finances are run by Mitch and Janis Winehouse.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> It was reported she earned about £1m singing at two private parties during Paris Fashion Week<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> as well as another £1m to perform at a Moscow Art Gallery for Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In January 2009, Winehouse announced that she was launching her own record label. The first act on her Lioness Records is Winehouse's 13-year-old goddaughter Dionne Bromfield. Her first album, featuring covers of classic soul records, was released on 12 October 2009.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Winehouse is the backing singer on several tracks on the album and she performed backing vocals for Bromfield on the BBC's television programme Strictly Come Dancing on 10 October.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Winehouse and her family are the subject of a 2009 documentary shot by Daphne Barak titled Saving Amy.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Winehouse entered into a joint venture in 2009 with EMI to launch a range of wrapping paper and gift cards containing song lyrics from her album Back to Black.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 8 January 2010, a television documentary, My Daughter Amy, aired on Channel 4.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Saving Amy was released as a paperback book in January 2010.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Winehouse was a notable fan of the brand Fred Perry.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She collaborated on a 17-piece fashion collection with the label, which was released for sale in October 2010. According to Fred Perry's marketing director, "We had three major design meetings where she was closely involved in product style selection and the application of fabric, colour and styling details," and gave "crucial input on proportion, colour and fit". The collection consists of "vintage-inspired looks including Capri pants, a bowling dress, a trench coat, pencil skirts, a longline argyle sweater and a pink-and-black checkerboard-printed collared shirt."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> At the behest of her family, three forthcoming collections up to and including autumn/winter 2012 that she had designed prior to her death were released.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Following Winehouse's death, Fred Perry has donated 20% of the net revenue from the Amy Winehouse collection to the charity set up in Winehouse's name, the Amy Winehouse Foundation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Artistry
Voice
Winehouse was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including rhythm and blues,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> soul,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> (sometimes labelled as blue-eyed soul and neo soul),<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> and jazz.<ref name="Frank" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The BBC's Garry Mulholland called Winehouse "the pre-eminent vocal talent of her generation".<ref name="Mulholland">Template:Cite news</ref> According to AllMusic's Cyril Cordor, she was one of the UK's premier singers during the 2000s. "Fans and critics alike embraced her rugged charm, brash sense of humor, and distinctively soulful and jazzy vocals".<ref name="AllMusic">Template:Cite web</ref> In The Guardian, Caroline Sullivan later wrote that "her idolisation of Dinah Washington and the Ronettes distinguished her from almost all newly minted pop singers of the early 2000s, and her exceptionally-susceptible-to-heartbreak voice did the rest".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Presentation and style
Winehouse's greatest love was 1960s girl groups.<ref name="Sisario"/> Her hairdresser, Alex Foden, borrowed her distinctive beehive hairdo (a weave) from the Ronettes<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and she borrowed her Cleopatra makeup from the same group.<ref name="Sisario">Template:Cite news</ref> Her imitation was so successful, as The Village Voice reports: "Ronnie Spector—who, it could be argued, all but invented Winehouse's style in the first place when she took the stage at the Brooklyn Fox Theater with her fellow Ronettes more than 40 years ago—was so taken aback at a picture of Winehouse in the New York Post that she exclaimed, "I don't know her, I never met her, and when I saw that pic, I thought, 'That's me!' But then I found out, no, it's Amy! I didn't have on my glasses."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The New York Times style reporter, Guy Trebay, discussed the multiplicity of influences on Winehouse's style after her death. Trebay noted, "her stylish husband, Blake Fielder-Civil, may have influenced her look." Additionally, Trebay observed:
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Former Rolling Stone editor Joe Levy, who had put her on the magazine's cover, broke her look down this way:
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Winehouse's use of bold red lipstick, thick eyebrows and heavy eyeliner came from Latinas she saw in Miami, on her trip there to work with Salaam Remi on Back to Black.Template:Sfn Her look was repeatedly denigrated by the British press. At the same time that the NME Awards nominated Winehouse in the categories of "Best Solo Artist" and "Best Music DVD" in 2008, they awarded her "Worst Dressed Performer".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Winehouse was also ranked number two on Richard Blackwell's 48th annual "Ten Worst Dressed Women" list, behind Victoria Beckham.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Public image
Winehouse's dichotomous public image of critical and commercial success versus personal turmoil prompted significant media comment. The New Statesman called Winehouse "a filthy-mouthed, down-to-earth diva",<ref name="NS">Template:Cite magazine</ref> while Newsweek called her "a perfect storm of sex kitten, raw talent and poor impulse control".<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Karen Heller with The Philadelphia Inquirer summarised the maelstrom this way:
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She's only 24 with six Grammy nominations, crashing headfirst into success and despair, with a codependent husband in jail, exhibitionist parents with questionable judgement, and the paparazzi documenting her emotional and physical distress. Meanwhile, an haute designer Karl Lagerfeld appropriates her dishevelled style and eating issues to market to the elite while proclaiming her the new Bardot.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>{{#if:|
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By 2008, her drug problems threatened her career. As Nick Gatfield, the president of Island Records, toyed with the idea of releasing Winehouse "to deal with her problems", he said, "It's a reflection of her status [in the US] that when you flick through the TV coverage [of the Grammys] it's her image they use."<ref name="jan24">Template:Cite news</ref> Post-Grammys, some questioned whether Winehouse should have been honoured with the awards given her recent personal and drug problems, including Natalie Cole, who introduced Winehouse at the ceremony and who herself battled substance-abuse problems while winning a Grammy for Best New Artist in 1975.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Winehouse was prevented from travelling to and performing at the Grammy Awards ceremony in the US due to failing a drug test,Template:Sfn and the executive director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, Antonio Maria Costa, said that the alleged drug habits of Winehouse and other celebrities sent a bad message "to others who are vulnerable to addiction" and undermine the efforts of other celebrities trying to raise awareness of problems in Africa, now that more cocaine used in Europe passes through that continent.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Winehouse's spokesperson noted that "Amy has never given a quote about drugs or flaunted it in any way. She's had some problems and is trying to get better. The U.N. should get its own house in order."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In January 2008, her record label stated it believed the extensive media coverage she had received increased record sales.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In an April 2008 poll conducted by Sky News, Winehouse was named the second-greatest "ultimate heroine" by the UK population at large, topping the voting for that category of those polled under 25 years old.<ref name="heroine"/> Psychologist Donna Dawson commented that the results demonstrated that women like Winehouse, who had "a certain sense of vulnerability or have had to fight against some adversity in their lives", received recognition.<ref name="heroine">Template:Cite web</ref>
In July 2008, BBC Radio Scotland's head, Jeff Zycinski, stated that the BBC, and media in general, were complicit in undermining celebrities, including Winehouse.<ref name="Broadcast">Template:Cite magazine</ref> He said that public interest in the singer's lifestyle did not make her lifestyle newsworthy. Rod McKenzie, editor of the BBC Radio One programme Newsbeat, replied: "If you play [Amy Winehouse's] music to a certain demographic, those same people want to know what's happening in her private life. If you don't cover it, you're insulting young licence fee payers."<ref name="Broadcast"/> In The Scotsman, English singer and songwriter Lily Allen was quoted to have said – "I know Amy Winehouse very well. And she is very different to what people portray her as being. Yes, she does get out of her mind on drugs sometimes, but she is also a very clever, intelligent, witty, funny person who can hold it together. You just don't see that side."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Personal life
Winehouse was raised Jewish and expressed pride in being Jewish, although she was not religious.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> During one interview, Winehouse said: "[B]eing Jewish to me is about being together as a real family. It's not about lighting candles and saying a bracha."<ref name="amyw1"/> Winehouse also frequently performed with a Star of David medallion.<ref name="amyw1">Template:Cite news</ref>
In 2013, in memory of Winehouse, the Jewish Museum London ran an exhibition titled "Amy Winehouse: A Family Portrait".<ref name="amyw1"/> The museum researched her paternal great-great-grandfather's arrival from Minsk in 1890, and how the family finally settled in London, starting out in working-class jobs before gradually moving to middle-class jobs.<ref name="amyw1"/>
Winehouse had 14 known tattoos, including "Daddy's Girl" on her left arm for her father and a pin-up girl with the name "Cynthia" on her right arm in memory of her Jewish grandmother.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2011, there were reports that Winehouse was in the process of adopting a 10-year-old girl from St. Lucia named Dannika Augustine. According to Dannika and her family, Amy had formed a strong bond with the poverty-stricken girl during her lengthy stays on the Caribbean island. Dannika referred to Amy as her mother and said they had a close, loving relationship.<ref name=ti>Template:Cite web</ref> Her grandmother, Marjorie Lambert, confirmed that Amy had expressed a strong desire to adopt Dannika and was even willing to move to St. Lucia to be her full-time mother.<ref name=ti/> However, Winehouse's representative denied these claims, stating that the adoption story was not true.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Relationships
Winehouse dated chef-musician Alex Clare in 2006, while on a break from her on–off boyfriend and future husband, Blake Fielder-Civil. She and Clare lived together briefly,Template:Sfn and in a pattern that Fielder-Civil would later repeat, Clare sold his story to the News of the World, which published it under the headline "Bondage Crazed Amy Just Can't Beehive in Bed."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Fielder-Civil, a former video production assistant,<ref name="Yahoo! News">Template:Cite news</ref> had dropped out of Bourne Grammar School and, aged 16, moved to London from his native Lincolnshire.<ref name="RS"/> He married Winehouse on 18 May 2007, in Miami Beach, Florida.<ref name="Yahoo! News"/> In a June 2007 interview, Winehouse admitted she could sometimes be violent toward him after she had been drinking, saying: "If he says one thing I don't like, then I'll chin him."<ref name="Ogunnaike">Template:Cite press release</ref> In August 2007, they were photographed, bloodied and bruised, in the streets of London after an alleged fight, although she contended her injuries were self-inflicted.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Winehouse's parents and in-laws publicly reported their numerous concerns, the latter citing fears that the two might commit suicide. Fielder-Civil's father encouraged fans to boycott Winehouse's music, and Mitch Winehouse said this would not help.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Fielder-Civil was quoted in a British tabloid as saying he introduced Winehouse to crack cocaine and heroin.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> During a visit with Mitch Winehouse at the prison in July 2008, Fielder-Civil reportedly said that he and Winehouse would cut themselves to ease the pain of withdrawal.<ref name="RS"/> Winehouse also reportedly confessed to having an affair in 2008.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref>
From 21 July 2008 to 25 February 2009, Fielder-Civil was imprisoned following his guilty plea on charges of trying to pervert the course of justice and of grievous bodily harm with intent.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The incident, in July 2007, involved his assault of a pub landlord that broke the victim's cheekbone, and also saw Winehouse briefly arrested in connection with it.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to the prosecution, the landlord accepted £200,000 as part of a deal to "effectively throw the [court] case and not turn up", and he testified that the money belonged to Winehouse, but she pulled out of a meeting with the men involved in the plot, to attend an awards ceremony.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Mitch Winehouse, as manager of his daughter's money, has denied the payoff came from her.Template:Sfn
When Winehouse was spotted with aspiring actor Josh Bowman on holiday in Saint Lucia, in early January 2009, she said she was "in love again, and I don't need drugs."<ref name="lucia">Template:Cite press release</ref> She commented that her "whole marriage was based on doing drugs" and that "for the time being I've just forgotten I'm even married."<ref name="lucia"/> On 12 January, Winehouse's spokesman confirmed that "papers have been received" for what Fielder-Civil's solicitor said were divorce proceedings based on a claim of adultery.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> In March, Winehouse was quoted in a magazine as saying, "I still love Blake and I want him to move into my new house with me—that was my plan all along ... I won't let him divorce me. He's the male version of me and we're perfect for each other."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Nonetheless, an uncontested divorce was granted on 16 July 2009 and became final on 28 August 2009.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Fielder-Civil received no money in the settlement.<ref name="Mitch"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Winehouse was in a relationship with a British writer and film director Reg Traviss, from early 2010 until her death.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> According to media reports and a biography written by Winehouse's father, Traviss and Winehouse had planned to marry and intended to have children.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, conflicting reports state that Winehouse and Fielder-Civil had begun a relationship that same year and had even discussed remarriage.<ref name=":0" />
In July 2008, when Rolling Stone reporter Claire Hoffman asked Winehouse if she was in a relationship with Pete Doherty, she replied: "We're just good friends", and added: "I asked Pete to do a concept EP, and he made this face, he looked at me like I'd pooed on the floor. He wouldn't do it. We're just really close". However, after Winehouse's death, Doherty said that he and Winehouse had been lovers at one point.<ref name="Hoffman">Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Substance use and mental health
Winehouse's substance use disorder was the subject of much media attention over the years.<ref name="Guardian2011">Template:Cite news</ref> In 2005, she went through a period of drinking, heavy drug use, and weight loss.<ref name="Mitch"/><ref name="RS">Template:Cite news</ref> People who saw her during the end of that year and early 2006 reported a rebound that coincided with the writing of Back to Black.<ref name="RS"/> Her family believes that the mid-2006 death of her grandmother, who was a stabilising influence, set her off into addiction.<ref name="RS"/> In August 2007, Winehouse cancelled a number of shows in the UK and Europe, citing exhaustion and ill health. She was hospitalised during this period for what was reported as an overdose of heroin, ecstasy, cocaine, ketamine and alcohol.<ref name="Telegraph">Template:Cite news Template:Cbignore</ref> In various interviews, she admitted to having problems with self-harm, depression, and eating disorders.<ref name="DD">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name="Profile">Template:Cite news</ref> Because of her personal issues, The Washington Post prewrote an obituary.<ref name = Farhi>Template:Cite news</ref>
Winehouse told the Los Angeles Times that the drugs were to blame for her hospitalisation and that "I really thought that it was over for me then."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Soon afterwards, Winehouse's father commented that when he had made public statements regarding her problems he was using the media because it seemed the only way to get through to her.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In an interview with The Album Chart Show on British television, Winehouse said she was manic depressive and not alcoholic, adding that that sounded like "an alcoholic in denial".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In December 2007, Winehouse's spokesman reported that the singer was in a physician-supervised programme and was channelling her difficulties by writing a lot of music.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In January 2008, the British tabloid The Sun posted a video in which Winehouse appeared to be smoking crack cocaine and speaking of having taken ecstasy and Valium. The event took place on Friday, 18 January, in the early hours of the morning.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Shortly after the alleged crack cocaine incident, Winehouse's father moved in with her, to keep her under '24-hour watch'.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In late January, Winehouse reportedly entered a rehabilitation facility for a two-week treatment programme.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 26 March, Winehouse's spokesman said she was "doing well".<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> By late April 2008, her erratic behaviourTemplate:Mdashincluding an allegation of assaultTemplate:Mdashcaused fear that her drug rehabilitation efforts had been unsuccessful.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Winehouse's father and manager then sought to have her detained under the Mental Health Act of 1983.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Her dishevelled appearance during and after a scheduled club night in September 2008 prompted new rumours of a relapse. Photographers were quoted as saying she appeared to have cuts on her arms and legs.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
According to her physician, Winehouse quit using illegal substances in 2008.<ref name="coronor">Template:Cite news</ref> In an October 2010 interview, speaking of her decision to quit drugs, Winehouse said, "I literally woke up one day and was like, 'I don't want to do this any more.Template:' "<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> However, alcohol emerged as a problem, with Winehouse abstaining for a few weeks and then lapsing into alcohol use.<ref name="coronor"/> Her physician said that Winehouse was treated with Librium for alcohol withdrawal and anxiety and underwent psychological and psychiatric evaluations in 2010, but refused psychological therapy.<ref name="coronor"/>
Before her death, Winehouse was examined by a psychiatrist and psychologist and doctors recommended that she undergo dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> DBT is based upon the biosocial theory of mental illness and is the first therapy that has been experimentally demonstrated to be generally effective in treating borderline personality disorder.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Violence and legal difficulties
In 2006, Winehouse admitted to punching a female fan in the face for criticising her for having a relationship with then-boyfriend Blake Fielder-Civil. She then attacked Fielder-Civil as he attempted to calm her down, kneeing him in the crotch.<ref name="Ogunnaike"/><ref name="standard_punch">Template:Cite web</ref>
In October 2007, Winehouse and Fielder-Civil were arrested in Bergen, Norway, for possession of seven grams of cannabis. The couple were later released and fined 3850 kroner (around £350).<ref name="summoned">Template:Cite news</ref> Winehouse first appealed the fines,<ref name="summoned"/><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> but later dropped the appeal.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 26 April 2008, Winehouse was cautioned after she admitted to police she slapped a 38-year-old man in the face, a "common assault" offence, her first of two. She voluntarily turned herself in and was held overnight. Police said that on her arrival, she was "in no fit state" to be interviewed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Ten days later, Winehouse was arrested on suspicion of possessing drugs after a video of her apparently smoking crack cocaine was passed to the police in January, but was released on bail a few hours later because they could not confirm, from the video, what she was smoking.<ref name="Telegraph"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Crown Prosecution Service considered charging her, but cleared her when it could not establish that the substance in the video was a controlled drug.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Some members of Parliament criticised the decision not to bring charges.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Two London residents were subsequently convicted of conspiracy to supply cocaine and ecstasy to Winehouse,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> leading to a two-year prison sentence for one, and a two-year community order.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 5 March 2009, Winehouse was arrested and charged with common assault following a claim by dancer Sherene Flash that Winehouse hit her in the eye at the September 2008 Prince's Trust charity ball.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Winehouse's spokesperson announced the cancellation of the singer's US Coachella Festival appearance in light of the new legal issue,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and Winehouse pleaded not guilty in court on 17 March.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> At her trial on 23–24 July she was charged with "deliberate and unjustifiable violence" while appearing to be under the influence of alcohol or another substance. She testified that she did not punch Flash, but tried to push her away because she was scared of her; she cited her worry that Flash would sell her story to a tabloid, Flash's height advantage, and Flash's "rude" behaviour.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 24 July Winehouse was found not guilty, citing that all but two of the witnesses were intoxicated at the time, and that medical evidence did not show "the sort of injury that often occurs when there is a forceful punch to the eye."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 19 December 2009, Winehouse was arrested for a third time on charges of common assault and public order offence after assaulting the front-of-house manager of the Milton Keynes Theatre when he asked her to move to a different seat after noisy participation in the pantomime playing, and advised her not to drink more than she already had. Winehouse pleaded guilty and was given a conditional discharge.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Paparazzi
With the paparazzi taking photographs of her wherever they could, Winehouse obtained an injunction against a leading paparazzi agency, Big Pictures, under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997; the resultant court order issued by the High Court in 2009 banned them from following her.<ref name="paparazzi">Template:Cite news</ref> Photographers were also banned from following her within 100 metres of her London home and photographing Winehouse in her home or the homes of her friends and relatives. According to a newspaper report, sources close to the singer said legal action was taken out of concern for the safety of Winehouse and those close to her.<ref name="paparazzi"/>
Respiratory and other health problems
On 23 June 2008, Winehouse's publicist corrected earlier misstatements by Mitch Winehouse that his daughter had early-stage emphysema, saying that she instead had signs of what could lead to early-stage emphysema.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Mitch Winehouse had also stated that his daughter's lungs were operating at 70 percent capacity and that she had an irregular heartbeat. He said that these problems had been caused by her chain smoking crack cocaine. The singer's father also reported that doctors had warned Winehouse that, if she continued smoking crack cocaine, she would have to wear an oxygen mask and would eventually die.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In a radio interview, Mitch Winehouse said the singer was responding "fabulously" to treatment, which included being covered with nicotine patches.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> British Lung Foundation spokesman Keith Prowse noted that this type of condition could be managed with treatment. Prowse also said the condition was not normal for a person her age, but "heavy smoking and inhaling other substances like drugs can age the lungs prematurely."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Norman H. Edelman of the American Lung Association explained that if she stopped smoking, her lung functions would decline at the rate of a normal person, but continued smoking would lead to a more rapid decline in lung function.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Winehouse was released from the London Clinic 24 hours after returning from a temporary leave to perform at Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday celebration and at a concert in Glastonbury, and continued receiving treatment as an outpatient.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In July 2008, Winehouse stated that she had been diagnosed with "some areas of emphysema" and said she was getting herself together by "eating loads of healthy food, sleeping loads, playing my guitar, making music and writing letters to my husband every day."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She also kept a vertical tanning bed in her flat.<ref name="Hoffman"/> Winehouse began precautionary testing on her lungs and chest on 25 October 2008<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> at the London Clinic for what was reported as a chest infection, leaving and returning at will.<ref name="Nov"/> She returned to the hospital on 23 November 2008 due to a reported reaction to her medication.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Death
Winehouse's bodyguard, Andrew Morris, said that he had arrived at her residence three days before her death and felt she had been somewhat intoxicated. Two days after, her mother likewise admitted she had acted "out of it."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This was the same day Winehouse had been visited by her doctor for one of her routine check-ups due to her fragile state, although no abnormalities were noted: "The doctor was happy with her condition. When he left on Friday night he had no concerns. Less than 24 hours later she was found dead."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After the check-up, Winehouse had called her doctor to confess her feelings regarding her codependency, stating: "I don't want to die", alongside how she had attempted sobriety, but could not achieve it.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> These were Winehouse's last recorded words, while her bodyguard's final conversation with her included the quote: "If I could, I would give it back just to walk down the street with no hassle."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>Template:Better source needed
Morris continued to observe her drinking moderately over the next few days since his arrival, and later said she had been "laughing, listening to music and watching TV at 2 a.m. the day of her death". Another source claims she was watching old re-runs of past performances and reminiscing.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> At 10 a.m. BST on 23 July 2011, Morris observed her lying on her bed and tried (unsuccessfully) to rouse her. This did not raise much suspicion because she usually slept late after a night out. According to the bodyguard, shortly after 3Template:Nbspp.m., he checked on her again and observed her lying in the same position as before, leading to a further check, in which he concluded that she was not breathing and had no pulse; he said he called emergency services.<ref name="coronor" /> At 3:54Template:Nbspp.m., two ambulances reached Winehouse's home in Camden, London.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Winehouse was pronounced dead at the scene. Shortly afterwards, the Metropolitan Police confirmed that she had died.<ref name="BBC">Template:Cite news</ref>
After her death was announced, media and camera crews appeared near Winehouse's residence. Forensic investigators entered the flat as police cordoned off the street outside; they recovered one small and two large bottles of vodka from her room.<ref name="coronor"/> After her death, the singer broke her second Guinness World Record: for the most songs by a woman to simultaneously appear on the UK singles chart, with eight.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Winehouse's record label, Universal Republic, released a statement that read in part: "We are deeply saddened at the sudden loss of such a gifted musician, artist and performer."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
With initially little verified information regarding the causes of Winehouse's death, there was considerable speculation on the subject. Various reports speculated on a fatal Class A drug, such as ecstasy overdose, or a lethal cocktail.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Winehouse's father Mitch denied these claims, stating: "Three years ago, Amy conquered her drug dependency. She was the happiest she has been for years." By the following month, August 2011, speculation about substance abuse being a factor in Winehouse's death had been disproven by an official toxicology report released to the public which showed that no illegal substances had been identified in Winehouse's system.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The coroner's report was released in October 2011, and it stated that Winehouse's blood alcohol content was 416Template:NbspTemplate:Tooltip per 100Template:NbspTemplate:Tooltip (0.416%) at the time of her death, more than five times the legal drink-drive limit.<ref name="coronor" /> According to the coroner, the "unintended consequence" of so much drink was her "sudden and unexpected death", as it reached a 'death by misadventure' verdict.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 17 December 2012, British authorities reopened the probe into Winehouse's death,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> when it was ruled that the first coroner was 'not qualified' for the role. The second inquest, delivered on 8 January 2013, matched the conclusions of the first inquest, with coroner Dr. Shirley Radcliffe finding that "She (Winehouse) voluntarily consumed alcohol, a deliberate act that took an unexpected turn in that it caused her death." The second inquest reached the verdict of misadventure due to alcohol poisoning.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Winehouse's death at the age of 27 prompted media comparisons to other musicians who died at that age, collectively referred to as the 27 Club.<ref name="washingtonpost.com">Template:Cite news</ref>
In a June 2013 interview, Alex Winehouse shared his belief that his sister's eating disorder and the consequent physical weakness were the primary cause of her death:
<templatestyles src="Template:Blockquote/styles.css" />
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— {{#if:|, in }}Template:Comma separated entries
}}{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Blockquote with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | author | by | char | character | cite | class | content | multiline | personquoted | publication | quote | quotesource | quotetext | sign | source | style | text | title | ts }}Winehouse's funeral, held on 26 July 2011 at Edgwarebury Lane Cemetery in North London, was a private ceremony attended by family and friends.<ref name="TimeFuneral"/><ref name="BBCFuneral"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Her mother and father, Janis and Mitch Winehouse, close friends Nick Grimshaw and Kelly Osbourne, producer Mark Ronson, goddaughter Dionne Bromfield and her boyfriend Reg Traviss were among those in attendance at the private service led by Rabbi Frank Hellner.<ref name="TimeFuneral"/><ref name="BBCFuneral">Template:Cite news</ref> Her father delivered the eulogy, saying "Goodnight, my angel, sleep tight. Mummy and Daddy love you ever so much."<ref name="TimeFuneral">Template:Cite news</ref> Carole King's "So Far Away" closed the service with mourners singing along as it was one of Winehouse's favourite songs.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She was later cremated at Golders Green Crematorium.<ref name="Marikar">Template:Cite news</ref> The family planned to sit a two-day shiva.<ref name="Marikar"/> On 16 September 2012, Winehouse's ashes were buried alongside those of her grandmother Cynthia Levy at Edgwarebury Lane Cemetery.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Initial reports after her death stated that Winehouse had left a will, which had been altered after her divorce from Blake Fielder-Civil. However it transpired that Winehouse had not left a will; her estate, worth around £4 million, was inherited by her parents.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Legacy
Soon after Winehouse's death, a number of prominent critics assessed the singer's legacy. Maura Johnston from The Village Voice said, "When she was on, Winehouse had few peers—she wasn't an octave-jumper like other big divas of the moment, but her contralto had a snap to it that enriched even the simplest syllables with a full spectrum of emotion". Sasha Frere-Jones of The New Yorker proclaimed, "Nobody can match Winehouse's unique transitions or her utterly weird phrasings. She sounded like an original sixties soul star, developed when the landscape had no rules. But now untrammelled traditionalism is in the lead and her beautiful footnote has been cut short. American soul—through visionaries like Erykah Badu and Janelle Monáe and Jill Scott—had moved on. But Winehouse was a fine shepherd of the past."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
On 13 February 2012, Winehouse was ranked 26th on VH1's 100 Greatest Women in Music list.<ref name="VH1 100">Template:Cite web</ref> In March 2017, singer-songwriter Bob Dylan said he was enjoying listening to Winehouse's last record (Back to Black), and called her "the last real individualist around".<ref name="Time">Template:Cite magazine</ref> In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked Winehouse at number 83 on its list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In 2025, The Guardian included Back To Black on their list of defining events in popular culture of the 21st century.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Artists who have credited Winehouse as an influence or for paving the way for them include Adele, Duffy,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Lady Gaga,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Raphael Saadiq, Anthony Hamilton, John Legend,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Bruno Mars,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Tove Lo,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Jessie J,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Emeli Sandé,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Victoria Justice,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Paloma Faith,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Lana Del Rey,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Sam Smith,<ref>Template:Cite web|access-date= 17 February 2016</ref> Florence Welch,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Halsey,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Alessia Cara,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Estelle,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Daya,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Jorja Smith,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Lauren Jauregui<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Billie Eilish.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Artists who have paid tribute to Winehouse include Nicki Minaj,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> M.I.A., Lady Gaga, Kelly Osbourne, Rihanna,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> George Michael, Adele, Dita Von Teese,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Courtney Love,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Patti Smith, who wrote "This Is the Girl" as an homage to Winehouse,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> and the rock band Green Day, who wrote a song in her tribute titled "Amy".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Winehouse's parents have each written memoirs about their daughter and donated the proceeds from both books to the Amy Winehouse Foundation. Mitch Winehouse's biography, titled Amy: My Daughter, was published in 2012.Template:Sfn Her mother Janis published Loving Amy: A Mother's Story, in 2014.<ref>Template:Cite interview</ref>
A documentary film, Amy (2015), directed by Asif Kapadia and produced by James Gay-Rees, was released on 3 July 2015. The film covers Winehouse's life, her relationships, her struggles with substance abuse both before and after her career blossomed, and her death.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2018, a documentary film based on Winehouse's album Back to Black, Amy Winehouse – Back to Black, was released.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In July 2021, a new documentary titled Reclaiming Amy aired on BBC Two to mark the 10th anniversary of Winehouse's death.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The film was primarily based on the perspective and narrated by her mother Janis Winehouse-Collins and included intimate stories of those who were close to Winehouse until the end of her life, including close friends Naomi Parry (Winehouse's stylist), Catriona Gourlay and Chantelle Dusette.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On 9 October 2017, it was announced by Winehouse's father Mitch that a West End/Broadway musical on Amy is in the works.<ref name="Musical">Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Mitch Winehouse revealed the news at the Amy Winehouse Foundation Gala event in London.<ref name="Musical" /> In July 2022, it was reported that a feature film biopic, entitled Back To Black (2024) was to be produced by StudioCanal UK, distributed by Focus Features and directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson. The script was written by Matt Greenhalgh and it was to be made with the full cooperation of Amy's father Mitch, and her estate.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Amy Winehouse Foundation
After the singer's death by alcohol intoxication in July 2011, the Amy Winehouse Foundation was set up by Winehouse's family and launched on 14 September 2011 (which would have been Winehouse's 28th birthday), with her brother Alex as an employee.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Its aim is to help vulnerable or disadvantaged young people, and it works with other charitable organisations to provide frontline support. Its central office is in North London, but it also has an office in New York (operating under the name 'The Amy Winehouse Foundation US').<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Jon Snow is a patron for the charity, with Barbara Windsor also before she died in 2020, and ambassadors include Jess Glynne, Patsy Palmer, Jessie Wallace, Keira Chaplin and Mica Paris. In October 2015, Mark Ronson became a patron.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Amy's brother Alex works full-time for the foundation, having given up his career as an online music journalist.<ref name="Alex" />
The charity itself works to prevent the effects of drug and alcohol misuse on young people, and it also aims to support, inform and inspire vulnerable and disadvantaged young people to help them reach their full potential.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 12 March 2013, with the help of ex-addict Russell Brand, the Foundation launched the Amy Winehouse Foundation Resilience Programme For Schools across the UK which aims to provide effective education around drugs, alcohol and dealing with emotional issues.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Achievements
Winehouse has sold over 30 million records worldwide.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> At the time of her death, Winehouse had sold over 1.75 million singles and over 3.98 million albums in the United Kingdom.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Meanwhile, she had sold about 3.4 million tracks and 2.7 million albums in the United States as of the same date.<ref>*Template:Cite web
- Template:Cite magazine</ref> Winehouse received 24 awards from 65 nominations. Among the awards and recognition for her debut album Frank, Winehouse earned an Ivor Novello Award from the British Academy of Songwriters for Best Contemporary Song ("Stronger Than Me"),<ref name="Profile" /> a Brit Award nomination for Best British Female Solo Artist,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and an inclusion in Robert Dimery's 2006 book, 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Her second studio album, Back to Black, produced numerous nominations, including two Brit Awards (Best British Album, and won her Best British Female Solo Artist), six Grammy Awards (including five wins),<ref name="Grammy">Template:Cite press release</ref> four Ivor Novello Awards, four MTV Europe Music Awards, three MTV Video Music Awards, three World Music Awards, and it was nominated for the Mercury Prize (Album of the Year) and a MOBO Awards (Best UK Female). Back to Black was preserved in the United States National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress in 2025.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite news</ref>
Discography
- Frank (2003)
- Back to Black (2006)
See also
References
Print sources
External links
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- Amy Winehouse Foundation - Charity Commission for England and Wales
Template:Amy Winehouse Template:Navboxes Template:UK best-selling albums (by year) 1990–2009
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