I am so absolutely sadden by Amy Winehouse's recent death. Although I'm not in London and won't be for awhile, I still have a deep connection with the city and where I lived.
I was fortunate enough to live in Camden where Amy lived and even sang about in her songs. Her flat was opposite mine on the other side of Camden Square. I knew she lived in the neighbourhood because she bought her flat in 2009 before I arrived in London, but was having some work done on it. Apparently from what I understood, the neighborhood was not looking forward to her moving in because of her reputation of being an abuser and the type of people that would be hanging around. Camden is very sketchy, eclectic, artsy and beautiful anyways so she and her friends fit right in.
I would look down that street everytime I would go to the convenience store, the Portuguese restaurant or the bus stop and I never saw any activity and I never saw her.
My point is not to say how I lived close to her but I wish I had met her or seen her walking in the neighbourhood. I read today that she would go into the same Portuguese restaurant that I use to frequent but I never saw her. She use to just walk around Camden like normal and no one would bother her. But being the fan that I am, I probably would've stopped and asked for an autograph and picture.
I feel so sad for her family. I wish I had met her. And no I didn't know her but if anyone suffered heartache like I had the year I bought her second album Back To Black, then you would understand why I feel this connection with her. I would play her album, with all the lights off in my apartment and drink wine and cry over a love that never materialised or one that had been broken. I understood what Amy was speaking of. I understood her heartache. I understood her struggle to be rid of something bad but too weak to stay away.
It's like the whole Back to Black album was written for me. Isn't that what every fan says? lol! But I felt an immense connection to her just from that album. Maybe if I had just seen her walking down the street, I would've encouraged her or given her some words to help her along in life. You just never know and now I'll never get the chance.
My friend Dawn came to visit me in May and I told her that we were going to go by Amy's house just to see if we could get a glimpse of her but we never did.
I'm also sadden by the amount of criticism she has been getting for her drug and alcohol use and that she brought this on herself. That maybe true but if anyone knows an addict or has an addiction of their own, they will understand that it's a demon that's hard to shake. And now it's claimed the life of a young and talented singer/songwriter along with countless others. I just hope her music continues to live on and that she will never be forgotten.
Ciao
