Amy Winehouse: The Lightning Trajectory of the Singer Born 41 Years Ago

On September 14, 1983, Amy Winehouse was born in London, England. The British singer had a meteoric career and died prematurely, at only 27 years old, on 07/23/2024.

The singer achieved success at the age of 20, but drug problems shortened her life. She had only a seven-year career, with two albums released.

In April 2024, the biopic “Back to Black” was released. Starring Marisa Abela and directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, the film chronicles the short career of the British actress. Take a look at the artist’s journey below!

Amy Jaden Winehouse grew up in the London suburb of Southgate. Coming from a Jewish family, her mother was a pharmacist and her father was a panel-turned-taxi driver, as well as an amateur singer.

The musical influence came from her family. Her father was a fan of Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett. Through her brother, Amy discovered grunge, an American style of rock, and jazz when she turned 18.

Amy began to show her musical talent at just 9 years old. She studied for four years at a private art school to hone her skills.

When he auditioned at the Sylvia Young Theatre School, the judges were so impressed with his performance that they awarded him a scholarship.

However, the singer had a reputation for not being dedicated to academic subjects. And because of her bad behavior, Amy ended up expelled from the institute for indiscipline, a year later.

At the age of 14, Amy began performing in small jazz clubs in London. It was also during this period that she had her first contact with drugs. Then the signs of bulimia, an eating disorder, began to appear.

She reportedly admitted the problem to her parents, but they treated it as temporary. Still unable to achieve success in music, Amy worked as a journalist and at a tattoo parlor to help support the family income.

Although she was expelled from the Sylvia Young Theatre School, the school principal nominated Amy to audition for the National Youth Jazz Orchestra. She was eventually approved as a singer.

Tyler James (pictured), a high school friend, saw her in the National Youth Orchestra and suggested that Amy record a CD. He delivered the album and helped the singer sign her first record deal.

At the age of 20, she recorded and released her first album, “Frank,” in 2003. Some songs mentioned her family problems, such as “What It Is About Men?”.

By the first half of 2004, the artist had sold more than 200,000 copies of the CD, as well as receiving a gold disc.

In 2006, Amy released her career-defining album, Back to Black, to critical acclaim. The album broke sales records in both the UK and North America.

The following year, the singer received six nominations at the Grammy Awards and won the statuette in five categories. With this, she became the biggest British winner in a single edition of the ceremony, up to that point.

The song “Rehab”, one of the artist’s most popular, was based on her managers’ attempts to put her in a rehabilitation clinic due to her alcohol addiction.

His other hits were “You Know I’m No Good”, “Valerie”, “Me and Mr. Jones”, “Just Friends”, “Stronger Than Me”, “Love Is a Losing Game” and “Wake Up Alone”.

In 2007, Amy Winehouse had her first major drug problem: she went into a coma after an overdose. The following year, she was caught using crack and ended up in a rehab clinic.

The singer was found dead at her home in Canden Town, London, due to alcohol poisoning at the age of 27.

The singer joined the list of musicians who died at the same age (27), such as Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain and Brian Jones, called the “27 Club”.

Since her death, three further posthumous Winehouse albums have been released: “Amy Winehouse at the BBC” (pictured), “The album collection” (both 2012) and “AMY”, in 2015.

In addition, the album “Back to black” became the best-selling album of the 21st century in the UK. After his death, another 2.4 million albums were sold. Previously, the mark had already exceeded 4 million copies.

Despite her short career, Amy has also been a fashion icon for renowned fashion brands thanks to her iconic and striking look.

In September 2023, Amy Winehouse’s ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil said on “Good Morning, Britain” that many fans blame him for the singer’s death, but that he was also a drug addict himself. He said that he was the only one, to date, who took responsibility for the artist’s plight.

Blake said that today he would do everything differently, but that he has tried to eliminate this “cross” (of guilt). He said that he misses Amy a lot and that she was his best friend.