Amy Winehouse

Amy Jade Winehouse (born 14 September 1983) is an English singer-songwriter, known for her eclectic mix of various musical genres including soul, jazz and R&B. Winehouse's2003 debut album “Frank did Well,” both commercially and critically, in her native Britain. It was nominated for the Mercury Prize. But the real blockbuster was her second album, “Back to Black,” released in 2006.

It led to six Grammy Award nominations and five wins. Winehouse has created media buzz apart from her singing. Her distinctive style, most notably her signature hairstyle, has created imitators and she has become the muse for fashion designers, most notably Karl Lagerfeld.

The singer's struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, as well as self-destructive behavior, have become regular tabloid news since 2007. She and her husband have also been plagued by legal troubles that have led to the cancellation of several tour dates.

“Back to Black” was released in the UK on 30 October 2006. It went to number one on the UK Albums Chart numerous times becoming best-selling album of 2007 in the UK , and entered at number seven on the Billboard 200 in the United States. The album spawned a number of singles.

The first single released from the album on 23 October 2006 was "Rehab": Time magazine named it one of the 10 Best Songs of 2007, ranking it at number one. Back to Black was released in the United States in March 2007, with "You Know I'm No Good" as its lead single.

The singer won 2008 Grammy Awards in the categories of 'Record of the Year', 'Song of the Year', and 'Best Female Pop Vocal Performance' for the single "Rehab,” while her album Back to Black won in the 'Record of the Year' award and a nomination for 'Album of the Year'.

The singer also earned a Grammy in the 'Best New Artist' category. She performed "You Know I’m No Good" and "Rehab" at the awards ceremony on 10 February 2008 via satellite, as her visa approval came through too late for her to travel to the U.S. The nominations, announced in early December, led to a 48 percent increase in the sales of Back to Black in the United States. Post Grammy Awards, album sales increased by 368 percent over the prior week, to the number 2 position in the United States.

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