Amy Jade Winehouse
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2
Books
2
Awards
Amy Winehouse won five Grammy Awards on a single night, February 10, 2008, becoming the first British female artist to do so. Her debut album ‘Frank’ 2003 and the follow-up ‘Back to Black’ 2006 blended jazz, soul, and R&B. ‘Back to Black’ debuted at number one in the UK. She died at age 27 from alcohol poisoning in her London home on July 23, 2011.
Names, aliases, and relatives of Amy Winehouse — birth name, kin, and personal ties.
Amy Winehouse by the numbers — life, work, and family.
Amy Winehouse — early life, career, personal life, and legacy.
Amy Winehouse, born on September 14, 1983 in Southgate, London to Janis Collins and Mitchell Winehouse, received her first guitar at age 13 and taught herself to play. At 14, she was expelled from Sylvia Young Theatre School for piercing her own nose and not applying herself. She briefly attended the BRIT School in Croydon alongside future stars Katie Melua and Leona Lewis before beginning her professional career at 16, performing club gigs and recording demos.
Amy Winehouse’s debut album Frank 2003 earned several award nominations. Her big break came with Back to Black 2006, inspired by her relationship with Blake Fielder-Civil. The single Rehab reached No. 9 on the US pop charts. On February 10, 2008, she won five Grammy Awards in a single night, the first British woman to do so. She performed via satellite from London due to visa issues. In June 2008, she sang for Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday at London’s Hyde Park. Later that year, she earned $2 million for a one-hour gig at Roman Abramovich’s party in Moscow. Her final stage appearance was at Camden’s Roundhouse on July 20, 2011, three days before her death.
Amy Winehouse married Blake Fielder-Civil on May 18, 2007; they divorced on July 16, 2009. Their turbulent relationship inspired much of Back to Black. She also went by nicknames like Wino, Ames, Gemma, and Cherry, and used the alias Amy Civil. She had a close friendship with singer Remi Nicole and Kelly Osbourne, and was godmother to Dionne Bromfield. She struggled with substance abuse and alcohol addiction throughout her adult life, which led to numerous tabloid headlines and legal issues.
Amy Winehouse’s beehive hairstyle became a trademark look, often imitated in pop culture. Critics compared her vocal talent to Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, and Sarah Vaughan. In 2008, George Michael called her the best female vocalist he had ever heard. A statue of her was unveiled in Camden on what would have been her 31st birthday. Her final recording, a duet with Tony Bennett of Body and Soul, was released on September 14, 2011. She is a member of the 27 Club, a group of musicians who died at age 27.
Browse the complete filmography of Amy Winehouse — every film, TV show, and documentary credit, ranked by popularity.
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Every award, honor, and recognition received by Amy Winehouse — Grammys, hall-of-fame inductions, civic honors, lifetime achievements.
Amy Winehouse's bibliography — every authored, edited, and co-written book, ranked by edition count.
A wall of memorable lines from Amy Winehouse — lyrics, interviews, and off-the-cuff remarks captured over a lifetime.
I Could Never Decide Whether I Wanted to Be Michael Jackson or Marry Him. I Don’t Care What People Say Because He’s a Fucking Genius.
I Know There Are People in the World Who Have Worse Problems Than Falling in Love and Having It Blow up in Your Face, but I Didn’t Want to Just Wake up Drinking, and Crying, and Listening to the Shangri Las, and Go to Sleep, and Wake up Drinking, and Listening to the Shangri Las. so I Turned It into Songs, and That’s How I Got Through It.
I’m Not Religious at All. I Think Faith Is Something That Gives You Strength. I Believe in Fate and I Believe That Things Happen for a Reason, but I Don’t Think That There’s a High Power, Necessarily. I Believe in Karma Very Much Though.
The Minute I Even Start to Think About What I’m Doing I Just Lose It. I Have to Just Shut My Eyes and Flow.
If You Don’t Throw Yourself into Something, You’ll Never Know What You Could Have Had.
I Don’t Care About All That Pop Stuff and I Couldn’t Go to the Smash Hits Poll Winners’ Party Without Bringing a Gun.
Tyler James Is My Best Friend and Because He’s a Singer, I’ve Always Had a Real Soft Spot for Him.
I’m Not a Very ‘Poor Me’ Kind of Person. I Wouldn’t Want It to Be All Roses Because Life Isn’t Like That.
If You Split up with Someone Twice, There’s Usually a Good Reason Why You Shouldn’t Be Together.
When We Hurt, We All Make Things Seem a Certain Way, or Make Things Look Worse Than They Are.
Life Happens. There’s No Point in Being Upset or Down About Things We Can’t Control or Change.
Life Is Short and I Have Made a Lot of Mistakes, but Everything in Life Happens for a Reason.
There Are Certain Things You Can Give Certain People and Certain Things You Can’t.
When You Have Had Your Heart Broken Once, It Can Never Be Broken Again.
If You Can’t Sort Something Out for Yourself, Then No One Can Help You.
There Are Worse Things in Life to Worry About Than Bad Press.
Life Is Funny and Sad, Sometimes Both at the Same Time.
I Don’t Care What People Think About Me. Never Did, Never Will. Life Is Too Short to Be Worrying About That Shit.
You Are the Only Person Who Can Sort Yourself Out, You Can’t Rely on Other People to Sort Out Your Problems.
Life Is so Much More Rewarding If You Strive for Something, Rather Than Take What’s Given to You on a Plate.
When You Get Your Heart Broken You Can’t Help but Believe That Only That Person Can Put It Back Together Again.
I Don’t Like to Look Back and Think ‘That Was a Horrible Time’. I Prefer to Think ‘I’m Glad I Came Through That’.
I’m Not Really a Girl. I’m Not Even a Boy’s Girl. I’m a Man’s Man and That Doesn’t Mean I’m a Big Dyke. Men Are Far More Straightforward. They Don’t Dwell on Things and Play Psychological Games. I’m Not Saying All Women Are Like That, or That Some Men Don’t Play Those Games, but on the Whole, Men Are More Easy Going and Don’t Piss Time up the Wall. Life Is Short. Anything Could Happen and It Usually Does, so There Is No Point in Sitting Around Thinking About All the Ifs, Ands and Buts.
Everyone Knows That There’s Certain Things That Aren’t Good for You, but There’s a Fine Line Between Enjoying Yourself and Being Completely Healthy. You Can Only Be Healthy to a Point, Where You’re Not Having Fun Anymore.
There’s No Point in Saying Anything but the Truth. Because, at the End of the Day, I Don’t Have to Answer to You, or My Ex, or a Man in a Suit from the Record Company. I Have to Answer to Myself.
I Realize That I Have a Chance to Bring Certain Things to Certain People’s Attention. I’ve Had a Flirtation with Every Eating Disorder There Is. I Wouldn’t Tie Myself Down to One. Usually I Would Be Like, Fuck off I’m a Musician, Why Do You Wanna Talk About That? but I’ve Realized That There Are a Lot of Girls Who Are in Exactly the Same Boat as Me. People Don’t Know How Hard It Is, and How Common It Is, and How Dangerous It Can Be. a Lot of Girls Are Ashamed, Like I Was Ashamed. I Used to Make Myself Sick and Be Ashamed. It’s Nothing to Be Ashamed Of, It’s a Compulsion, If You Can Control It Great, If You Can’t Then You Are in the Grip of Something Bigger Than You. It’s Not a Physical Thing; It’s Very Much a Psychological Thing. I’m Glad I Can Talk About It.
I Went Through Every Eating Disorder You Can Have. a Little Bit of Anorexia, a Little Bit of Bulimia. I’m Not Totally OK Now but I Don’t Think Any Woman Is.
I Believe You Only Get to Be in Real Love Once.
I’m a Realist and a Dreamer.
To Be in Love with Someone Is to Be Able to Let Them Go and Do What They Want and Pray They’ll Come Back to You.
Little-known facts about Amy Winehouse — origins, oddities, and behind-the-scenes details from a public life.
Fans camped outside her London home for days after her death, leaving flowers and makeshift shrines while many women mimicked Winehouse’s trademark beehive and winged eyeliner as a tribute.
Amy Winehouse joined the infamous 27 Club when she died at age 27, a group that includes Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, Brian Jones, Alan Wilson, Pete Ham, Jonathan Brandis, and Jean-Michel Basquiat.
Her final studio recording was a duet of Body and Soul with Tony Bennett at Abbey Road Studios, released on September 14, 2011, what would have been her 28th birthday, and featured on Bennett’s album Duets II.
She made history as the first British artist to win five Grammy Awards in a single year, at the 2008 ceremony.
The Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically in 2008 went to her track Love Is a Losing Game.
A life-size bronze statue of Winehouse was unveiled in Camden, north London on what would have been her 31st birthday.
She trained at Sylvia Young Theatre School at age twelve but was expelled two years later for not applying herself and piercing her own nose.
Back to Black, her 2006 album, was directly inspired by her tumultuous relationship with Blake Fielder-Civil before they married.
Though she was granted a US visa to attend the 2008 Grammys, she performed via satellite from London, winning five awards: Best Pop Vocal Album, Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Female Pop Performance for Rehab, and Best New Artist.
Her last live performance was at Camden’s Roundhouse on July 20, 2011, where she sang in support of her goddaughter Dionne Bromfield, just three days before her death.
She received her first guitar at age 13 and taught herself to play.
She shares the record with Alicia Keys and Lauryn Hill for the most Grammy Awards won by a female artist in one year, with five each.
At about age ten, Winehouse formed a rap duo called Sweet n Sour with childhood friend Juliette Ashby, where she was Sour.
She received six Grammy nominations for the 2008 ceremony, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year for Rehab.
Back to Black debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart in 2006.
Her music blended jazz, soul, and rhythm and blues.
In 2007, she won the Brit Award for Best British Female.
Blake Fielder-Civil, her ex-husband, named his daughter with the middle name Jade as a tribute to Winehouse.
She attended Ashmole School in Southgate during her childhood.
Her struggles with addiction and tumultuous personal life made her a frequent tabloid target.
She died from alcohol poisoning at her home in Camden, London.
She was arrested on suspicion of attempting to interfere with a court case involving her husband and was released on bail.
The music video for Tears Dry On Their Own was shot at 8510 Cashio Street in Los Angeles.
Blake Fielder-Civil was among five men arrested for attempting to pervert the course of justice.
Alex Winehouse, her brother, co-founded the Amy Winehouse Foundation after her death.
Janis Collins, her mother, worked as a pharmacist before retiring.
Mitch Winehouse, her father, drove a taxi before retiring.
She counted Remi Nicole and Kelly Osbourne as friends, and Tyler James as a best friend.
She was nominated for two Brit Awards in 2003.
She was born in the Southgate area of Enfield, London.
Her debut album Frank earned a Mercury Music Award nomination in 2004.
She was godmother to singer Dionne Bromfield.
She was acquitted of common assault charges.
Actress Marisa Abela portrayed Winehouse in the 2024 biopic Back to Black.
At the BRIT School, she studied alongside future stars Katie Melua and Leona Lewis.
Blake Fielder-Civil made a cameo in Lily Allen’s LDN music video, playing a flower seller.
She was ranked number two on Mr. Blackwell’s 48th annual Worst Dressed Women list.
Quick answers to the questions readers ask most about Amy Winehouse.
Celebrities similar to Amy Winehouse — same craft, ranked by reach.
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