AMY WINEHOUSE- CASE STUDY

Career Summary Amy Winehouse was a very popular English

singer/ songwriter who focussed on such genres as Rhythm and Blues and jazz, among others.

She created a total of 14 singles along with 2 studio albums. Accompanying these, she made 15 music videos

She frequently collaborated with other popular artists, most notably Mark Ronson in the song ‘Valerie’

Up to her death (23rd July 2011) she had sold a over 1.75 million singles and over 3.98 million albums.

Debut album In October 2003, Winehouse released her

debut album ‘Frank’ which was produced by ‘Island Records’.

The name is a reference to one of her musical inspirations Frank Sinatra but it also sets the tone of the songs which feature lyrics as simple as the name suggests.

The album was ranked 60th in the UK Top 40 and rose to 13th in January 2004.

Following her death, the album re-emerged in the charts selling almost 20,000 copies.

Back to Black In October 2006 Winehouse released her

most popular album ‘Back to Black’ (again by ‘Island Records’) which featured many of the hit singles she is best remembered for. (Rehab, Back to Black, Love is a losing game etc.)

The album was very well received, winning best pop vocal album and nominated for album of the year at the Grammy awards.

Reception Although she was one of the best selling vocalists

of her generation, Winehouse’s personal trouble was no secret with addiction to drugs and alcohol (which eventually led to her death in 2011).

This led to an often poor reception with several people referring to her as a poor role model for her younger fans and accused of promoting an unhealthy lifestyle.

This image was also not helped by the Documentary ‘Amy’ released after her death which often depicted her lifestyle in similar ways.