Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983) is an English singer-songwriter, primarily in the genres of jazz and soul. She was born in the Southgate area of Enfield, London to a Jewish family with a history of jazz musicians. She was raised in a family of four: her father Mitchell Winehouse (a taxi driver), her mother Janis (a pharmacist), and her older brother Alex. She grew up in the suburb of Southgate and attended Ashmole School. At age ten, Winehouse founded a short-lived rap group called Sweet ‘n’ Sour with childhood friend Juliette Ashby. She was trained at the Sylvia Young Theatre School when she was twelve years old but was allegedly expelled at fourteen for “not applying herself” and piercing her nose. She later attended the BRIT School in Selhurst, Croydon. She appeared in an episode of The Fast Show as an extra when she was 13.
