On July 23rd, 2011 Amy Jade Winehouse died in London, England at the age of 27. There were many questions surrounding her death, not just about how she died, but about why she died. The official reports tell us that it was accidental alcohol poisoning, and Amy’s substance abuse problems had been in the news for years. When I heard about Amy’s death, I honestly wasn’t surprised. But I couldn’t help but wonder why this happened to her. Amy’s voice was effortless, pure, powerful and incredibly soulful. She stood five foot two inches and weighed less than a hundred pounds. But her voiced boomed; it was magic. In recent years Amy had won five Grammy’s, tying the all time record for most Grammy’s won on a single night by a female artist. Her success was tremendous. Her reach global. So why?
In July of 2015 Amy, a documentary, was released about Amy Winehouse’s life before and after becoming famous. The film is directed by Asif Kapadia who conducted over 100 interviews with friends and family of Amy. Unseen archive footage and music tracks of and by Winehouse are incorporated in the documentary as well. The film has been a mega success. Currently the film has had 33 award nominations, winning 29 including Best European Documentary and the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. Kapadia’s film may not give a definite answer on why Amy’s life ended so soon, but does tell her story and it has told it well.
