It was announced on July 23, 2011 that British singer Amy Winehouse died in her London home. It has created a buzz all around the world but not because it happened but that it finally happened. The world has been expecting Amy's death for several years. Amy was a talented singer and could have had a secure and profitable career for decades to come. She could have done things in her life time with ease that most people dream of doing. She has critical acclaim heaped onto her, she won 5 Grammy Awards, she won a Brit Award for Best British Female Artist; and she was a three time winner of the Ivor Novello Award. It simply wasn't good enough for her. It wasn't going to make her happy or fulfilled. Amy had dark, dark demons inside of her. She has battled drug & alcohol abuse and several health issues associated with that abuse. What was she hoping to get out of them? Was she trying to mask some pain? Why did Amy begin using drug and alcohol in the first place? Did she do it to fit in or because she was modeling the behavior of famous performers she admired? Was she abusing herself to try to avoid dealing with deep-seeded emotional issues? I do not know and perhaps few others do. I do wonder about those people around Amy who continued to help her use drugs. I know her parents (God Bless them) tried to save her and get her off drugs but there had to be many friends and business associates around her that enabled her. A junkie is much easier to manipulate and control then a person who's mind, body, and soul are sober. I believe some people had an interest in keeping her a drug addict. Could a clean and sober Amy continue to sing her hit Rehab? Did the marketing department help seal her image as Amy the talented druggie who sings Rehab? If you recall how much fame and praise this song earned Amy you'll see that it may have helped seal her identity, self-image, and ultimately her fate. Much of the world's media cheered on Amy's drug addiction and her defiance of a sober life. Perhaps if they had condemned her she would have had more incentive to become clean and sober? How many more artist will fall into the trap of the abuse, manipulation, and exploitation of those in and around the entertainment business?
Amy is already more popular in the hours after her death then she was during her life. Sales of Winehouse's albums increased 37 times between Friday and Saturday, while track sales were up by 23 times according to The Official Charts Co. They are expecting a number one for her shortly. The people purchasing the album now are not fans or lovers of her music, they are those who enjoy the freak show, the rubberneckers slowing down to visit the car wreck, and the Jerry Springer watchers. I often refer to this segment of society as "the sheep". They listen to what the media tells them is good and they embrace it, not because they have made the decision for themselves but because they are going where the largest crowd is. They are often the ones led to slaughter. I remember several people telling me when Britney Spears released her first single they thought it was terrible but they kept hearing it on the radio and seeing the video on TV and eventually thought it was good. It got jammed down their throats enough times by the manipulators in the entertainment business and they accepted it. How sad is it that people are skyrocketing sales of her album after her death when they didn't value it enough to purchase it when she was alive? Amy isn't around to enjoy the increased sales and exposure. I am hoping the money goes to her family but make no mistake, her record company, publishing company, and numerous others are going to profit off of her big time!
Pete Townshend once said that he eventually realized Rock-N-Roll was fueled by bodies. It is true, many musicians die young and most of them do it to themselves. I remember reading other musicians saying they tried various drugs, got a house somewhere, got a certain guitar or car because a musician they admired did so. How stupid and immature is that? However, it fits the emotional profile of many who enter the entertainment business. They want the acceptance and don't realize how expensive the cost is. The musicians I grew up admiring were like De mi-gods to me but the only time they ever looked pathetic in my eyes was when they were talking about drug use. I learned never to use drugs because of the price I observed them paying. Topper Headon was the best drummer in the world until he began abusing heroin. Producer Sandy Pearlman had Topper play the drum tracks once the normal way and then once backwards on every track of The Clash's "Give 'Em Enough Rope". He could play any style of music expertly, he was a seasoned performer, and was nick-named the "Human Drum Machine". Even when abusing drugs Topper was a great musician, Topper is one of the main writers of Rock The Casbah. The other members of the Clash could no longer tolerate his drug abuse and they fired him from one of the biggest bands in the world. Sadly this was one of the events that led to the premature end of the Clash. This cost all of them in money, fame, emotion, success etc. and it cost their fans dearly. Thankfully after many years of struggle, attempts at rehab and even time in prison for providing the heroin that killed a friend Topper has been clean and sober for many years and still drumming incredibly even if he isn't in a major band. This is what I would have hoped for Amy but I believe Topper had better people around him that put him ahead of money or their own self interest.
I wonder what impact it would have on the world if athletes, artist, entertainers, and politicians actually had to pay severe consequences for their actions? Too often they get away with a slap on the wrist compared to the consequences the average citizen would pay. What message would it send to the next generation that if you do something wrong you pay a severe price? Amy Winehouse paid with her life but the media, those who will profit off her, and others will glorify Amy show much that the only message people will get from it is that Amy's behavior is great and there is a lot of benefits from acting as she did. Amy's body has been tossed onto the fire that is Rock-N-Roll it will help fuel an industry that profits too much of these types of events.
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