A British coroner found that Amy Winehouse died because there was too much alcohol in her blood. The 27-year-old, Grammy Award–winning singer had a blood alcohol concentration that was five times the British drunk driving limit.

After weeks of being sober, Winehouse died from accidental alcohol poisoning. Coroner Suzanne Greenaway said that it was ”death by misadventure.”

When Winehouse died on July 23, the cause of death was inconclusive.

Her blood alcohol level was 0.4; the British drunk driving limit is 0.08. Her doctor, Dr. Christina Romete, said that she had been sober most of July and had only resumed drinking a few days before her death.

Romete added that Winehouse had turned to alcohol after she stopped taking illicit drugs in 2008. When Romete saw her the night before her death, she recalls Winehouse being in a  calm mood and talking about her upcoming birthday.

The police detective who arrived shortly after Winehouse’s body was found, Inspector Les Newman, said there were three empty vodka bottles in her bedroom.

Andrew Morris, Winehouse’s live-in security guard who found her body, told the coroner’s court, “She did it moderately… she wasn’t drinking to get drunk.”

 Winehouse’s parents attended the hearing at St. Pancras Coroner’s Court on Wednesday, October 26. The  family spokesman Chris Goodman said in a statement that  it was a relief  for the family “to finally find out what happened to Amy.”

Source: Boston Globe

Promotional Consideration:

If you don’t want anything dreadful to befall an alcoholic friend or loved one, think about getting alcohol intervention services before it’s too late.

Mitch and Amy Winehouse via wireimage.com

Mitch Winehouse, the late singer Amy Winehouse’s father, delivered a touching statement about the songstress during an interview with Piers Morgan.

The father expressed his daughter’s love for people and his love for her during the CNN show, Perez Hilton reports.

“She had so many qualities and so many frailties, but she was a wonderful girl and a wonderful friend and all of the nonsense that was written about her over the last five or six years has all gone now,” said Mr. Winehouse. “Everybody is full of love and admiration for her, as she was. She was full of love, even for people who didn’t deserve it. I just wish she was here so we could give her a cuddle.”

In the wake of his daughter’s death, Mr. Winehouse has channeled his grief into setting up a charity in his daughter’s name, called The Amy Winehouse Foundation.  The charity assists young people who suffer from drug and alcohol addiction and will launch on September 14.

Coldplay debuted their new song, “Charlie Brown,” Wednesday night on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”.

Musician Chris Martin of Coldplay performs onstage at the UCLA Tennis Center on August 3, 2011. (WireImage)

Kimmel announced he was loading the entire audience onto a bus to see Coldplay at UCLA’s Tennis Center in Los Angeles.

The band was Kimmel’s first musical guest when the show started in January 26, 2003. When asked what they have been up to in the last eight-and-a-half years since being on his show, singer Chris Martin answered, “Will [Champion] works for FedEx and the rest of us run a pet shop.”

Proceeds from the concert helped raise money for the Grammy Foundation’s Grammy in the Schools music education program for high school students.

Coldplay paid tribute to Amy Winehouse by playing a slow rendition of her hit “Rehab” before leading into “Fix You,” a song Martin wrote for his wife Gwyneth Paltrow after the death of her father.

The 90-minute sold-out performance included their biggest hits “Yellow,” “Clocks,” and “Viva La Vida” along with new songs “Major Minus,” and “Moving to Mars.”

Coldplay will headline Lollapalooza at Chicago’s Grant Park on August 5.

Amy Winehouse’s family blames her abrupt withdrawal of alcohol, not drugs, for killing her. The cause of her death will not be known for weeks, pending the completion of toxicology tests.

Amy Winehouse at Kalemegdan Park in Belgrade, Serbia. This was the singer's last live concert performance before her death on July 23, 2011.

The 27-year old ignored doctors’ advice to steadily cut back from her heavy drinking. Instead of listening, she went cold turkey. Her family believes this was too much of a shock for her system.

Sam Zakhari, director of the metabolism and health effects division at the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism said, “People who drink heavily and stop suddenly may go through alcohol withdrawal, which can cause symptoms ranging from anxiety to tremors to full-blown seizures and delusions,” adding, “Sometimes, this can affect the heart, causing cardiac arrhythmia, and in rare cases, this can be fatal.”

Usually the death of abusers is due to an excessive amount of alcohol or drugs- even a combination of the two. This is a rare case where someone did die from quitting suddenly.

Winhouse also had issues with an eating disorder, destructive relationships, and abortive performances. These dangerous habits may have damaged her body to the point where she could not recover, even after quitting alcohol.

Zakhari said all alcoholics should taper off slowly and quit under a physician’s supervision to avoid severe symptoms. Prescription medications like benzodiazepines may be useful to calm the brain and counteract the stimulant effect that kicks in when the body is no longer getting a depressant, such as alcohol.

If Amy quit under the supervision of a physician, heart risks based on family history and other factors would have been considered when providing treatment.

If you have a teen struggling with a drug or alcohol addiction, consider a teen rehab as a treatment option.

Promotional Consideration:

The symptoms of alcohol withdrawal can become so severe they could actually kill a person. This is why an alcoholic is going to need alcohol withdrawal treatment in order to avoid something that tragic from happening, among other things.

Amy Winehouse performs in London last year (WireImage)

Singer Amy Winehouse was found dead in her London apartment Saturday.

She was 27.

“On arrival, officers found the body of a 27-year-old female who was pronounced dead at the scene,” a police statement said.

Winehouse had been a soulful singer whose American popularity came to a head in 2007 and early 2008. By age 24, she had already won six Grammy Awards.

But perhaps no singer in American popular culture history has appeared in the spotlight and fallen from grace so quickly as the wispy Winehouse. Her success in the United States barely established itself before her addictions got the better of her.

Winehouse battled drug addiction for years, to the point where he affected her onstage performances. She had recently been booed off stage at European concerts for stumbling around and even forgetting lyrics to her songs.

She ended up canceling her European tour after a disastrous performance in Belgrade in June.

No cause of death has been released. Police are investigating it as an “unexplained” death.

Promotional consideration:

With the numerous resources about alcoholism that are available online, you can figure out how you can help an alcoholic friend or loved one while it’s not too late.

drug rehab facilities

(Media credit/Bryan Adams for Harper's Bazaar)

Oft-embattled singer Amy Winehouse has been out of the news for more than a year, and she tells Harper’s Hazaar that she’s happier than ever.

She’s even launched a new clothing line.

In the November issue of Harper’s, Winehouse also discusses her style inspirations, and reveals that she’s been together with her new boyfriend for over three months.

On working with Fred Perry on her fashion line: “I knew exactly what I wanted. And I love Fred Perry so much. I was honored that they would even, like, ‘Do you want to come and do a line?’ Me? Like, me?” She stabs a finger into her chest. “Yeah!” she adds.

On her love life:

“I’ve got a ve’y nice boyfriend. He’s ve’y good to me.”

On whether she’s in love: “I hardly know … yet. We’ve only been together three and a half months.”

On whether she considers herself a style icon:  “I just dress like … I’m an old black man. Sorry!” she says. “Like I’m an old Jewish black man. I just dress like it’s still the ’50s.”

Winehouse in better times

She’s gunnin’ hard to be the next Janis or Billie.

Singer Amy Winehouse was rushed to the hospital Sunday after suffering what’s being described as a “seizure,” following a fight with her just-out-of-jail soon-to-be ex-husband, Blake Fielder-Civil, according to The Sun.

The troubled‚ singer went on a drinking and drug binge following a huge fight with her recently-rehabbed hubbie. The Sun reports that Winehouse is still in the hospital, and undergoing tests.

“It didn’t stop until she was on the floor on Sunday. She has ended up in hospital a few times after similar drink and drugs related seizures. If she carries on, one of these incidents will be her last,” the source said.

Winehouse’s spokesman confirmed that his client was indeed in the hospital, but was there for “a bad reaction to the combination of medication she has currently been prescribed.”

Isn’t that an overdose? So sad.

The biggest wins of the night included the rehabed Amy Winehouse and the innovator Kanye West. Unable to travel to Los Angeles after Visa drama and travel difficulties, Winehouse did a live performance from London. It served as a reminder for why she was a big winner on five of her six nominations.

Another performance that drew tears from the audience was that of West, who did his hit "Stronger" and a heart felt a cappella tribute to his recently deceased mother with "Hey Mama." West received four Grammy awards, including Best Rap Album for Graduation.

The 50th aniversary show was focused on history and memorable performances. Alicia Keys started the show with a simulated duet with Frank Sinatra, while Beyonce and Tina Turner energized everyone with their rendition of "Proud Mary." Rhianna, who became a first time winner for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration with “Umbrella," also performed with 1980′s band The Time.

Throughout the show there were also the boring or plain random moments, like Kid Rock’s awkward performance. Overall the show was entertaining and, shocking. The biggest award, Best Album of the Year, was unexpectedly awarded to 67-year-old jazz pianist Herbie Hancock “River: The Joni Letters.” His album, a tribute to singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell, was the first jazz album to win since 1965.

The difference between the Grammys and other shows is that musical peers decide who will receive the coveted golden award. With new developments in the music industry it is good to know artists will still receive the same judgment, ensuring more Gammys for another 50 years.

The British Invasion: Millennium Edition continues with the arrival of Kate Nash’s debut album “Made of Bricks,” which hit shelves in January.

Nash, 20, is the latest in the assembly line of female singer-songwriters to hail from the U.K. Her style is more Lily Allen than Amy Winehouse, but unlike that pair, Nash’s personal life hasn’t yet overshadowed her musical accomplishments. Anglophiles will appreciate the uniquely British euphemisms scattered throughout “Made of Bricks” (“I’d rather be with your friends, mate / ‘Cause they are much fitter”) as well as Nash’s over exaggerated drop the R’s accent (“fitt-ah”), a trait which has been criticized by some of her compatriots as a bit overdone.

Nash, so the story goes, composed and made early recordings of many of the songs that would become “Made of Bricks” while nursing a broken foot after she fell down a flight of stairs. Using a guitar that her parents gave her as a consolation gift, Nash posted early demos of the tracks to her MySpace page, where she built a growing fanbase and attracted the attention of industry reps.

Throughout “Made of Bricks,” Nash contemplates the ups and downs of schoolgirl crushes and young love. She dismisses some lads with a sassy vigor reminiscent of Allen’s (see: “Dickhead”) and pines after others (“Pumpkin Soup”). While musically, the album is more complex and innovative than Allen’s “Alright, Still,” it sometimes falls short lyrically. The tracks too often consist of phrases that seem to have been hastily thrown together simply because they rhyme (i.e. “I use mouthwash / Sometimes I floss”).

Sometimes the technique work well, as in the repetitive “Shit Song” (“Darlin’ don’t give me shit / ‘Cause I know that you’re full of it”). But other times it’s unfortunate. The melodies are catchy enough to sing along to, but it would be better if the words being belted out weren’t so trite. Some of the strongest songs emerge when Nash sheds her harsh exterior and adopts a more wistful tone, as on the achingly vulnerable “Nicest Thing.”

At a recent performance in New York, Nash seemed a bit awe-struck playing in front of a sell-out crowd just 24 hours after “Made of Bricks” was released in the U.S. What she lacked in stage presence she made up for with furious fingerwork along her piano on crowd pleasers like “Mariella” and first single “Foundations.”

Nash’s promising musical prowess makes it easy for listeners to overlook the teenage angst/dear-diary sentiments on “Made of Bricks.” This commendable debut from a rising young talent will leave listeners intrigued to discover what Nash is really made of.