Amy Winehouse was among the many stars performing at a tribute last weekend in honor of former South African president Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday. When she was finished, according to reports, Winehouse simply bowed her head.

During another part of the concert, 24-year-old Winehouse sang lead in a multi-artist rendition of the Specials’ early 1980s anti-apartheid anthem “Free Nelson Mandela.”

For all of Winehouse’s drama, she got this show right. She took to the stage on time and sang beautifully.

But some may wonder why Winehouse was at the event at all. Earlier this month, a video surfaced of Winehouse and a friend singing a racist ditty. In the video, which was filmed last year by her husband Blake Fielder-Civil, Winehouse appears disoriented. She’s near a coffee table filled with drug paraphanelia. She is prodded by Blake to sing a slur-filled song to the tune of the children’s ditty "Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes," and does so only after he promises he isn’t filming her. It’s testament to Winehouse’s state of inebriation that she believes that someone aiming a video camera in her face is not filming her. … continue reading

Recently, I have been contemplating getting another tattoo. After all, it has been scientifically proven that they are hot. Before I get inked, however, there are two things I have to decide on first: the design and the placement.

Now you see why I am holding out. There is nothing worse than a bad tattoo.

Let's be real, though: The design options are endless; the placement options are not. And what better way to decide where to permanently mark my body than by looking to celebrities for guidance? It seems to be the trend.

First, there's the old-school armband that Pamela Anderson made popular.

Her thoughts on body art?

"Tattoos are like stories — they're symbolic of the important moments in your life. Sitting down, talking about where you got each tattoo and what it symbolizes, is really beautiful."

But what exactly does barbed wire symbolize? Oh, right: There was that 1996 movie written by someone named Ilene Chaiken. But I digress.

Moving on, I present to you arms and wrists.

Clockwise from top left: Winona Ryder, Jessica Alba, Alanis Morissette and Tegan and Sara.

(See more of Tegan and Sara's tattoos here.)

Of course, I could follow the examples of Megan Fox, Alyssa Milano and Christina Ricci and choose the back of my shoulder. … continue reading

So, if you watched last night’s telecast of the 50th Grammy Awards, you probably have some questions. Questions like, who is that guy, and why did he steal Amy Winehouse’s Grammy for Best Album of the Year? Or how is it that the Beatles won only four Grammys when they were together, while Fergie already has three? Or did Amy really thank her husband as “my Blake incarcerated” in her acceptance speech? Yes, yes she did. So without further ado, here are some of your most burning (though hopefully not itching) Grammy questions revealed.

Q: How it is it that the most electrifying performer in the room wasn’t even in the room?

A: Visa problems kept The Winehouse 5,500 miles away in London, but she still electrified via satellite with a performance that was equal parts raw, campy, sassy and defiant. Plus, she brought the one thing the somewhat stodgy awards affair sorely lacked — the air of unpredictability. God bless you, Amy Winehouse. Now get back to rehab and get better. … continue reading

I don't usually enjoy the Grammy Awards broadcast as a whole. It's the sort of thing DVRs were made for — you can fast-forward through all the country music and just watch your favorites. (Kidding. Well, I'm not, but I fully support your right to listen to country music. Just not if I'm ever a passenger in your car, OK?)

But this year, I've been looking forward to the Amy Winehouse–Feist smackdowns for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. They were even both scheduled to perform. Both of them!

Alas; as we all know, these have been trying times for Winehouse. She's actually gone to rehab (yes), and even though she's supposedly on the road back to health, the U.S. Embassy has denied her visa request. So unless she can find a way to sneak into the States (via a very large smuggler and a Winehouse-sized prophylactic, maybe?) she won't be at the Grammy Awards.

Her publicists had this to say:

Amy has been progressing well since entering a rehabilitation clinic two weeks ago and, although disappointed with the decision, has accepted the ruling and will be concentrating on her recovery.

Couldn't they do a satellite feed or something? She could even parody herself and sing "Rehab" from rehab. Might as well enjoy the irony.

[Update: Winehouse is indeed going to perform and accept awards via satellite. My tears dry on their own!]

I live in hope that we'll someday see a healthy, happy Winehouse with a sense of humor about herself and the industry, because I swear I caught a glimpse of that person when I saw her in concert over the summer. I mean, she's only 24 — she could have a long career if she manages to put the pieces back together. … continue reading

The nominations for the 50th annual Grammy Awards were announced yesterday. As you've probably heard, the leaders of the pack are Kanye West (eight nominations) and Amy Winehouse (six nominations). Rihanna was nominated for four awards, as was Feist.

But I don't care about the numbers. I'm focusing on Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Both of those categories pit two of my favorites of 2007 (and probably of a lifetime) against each other: Winehouse and Feist.

I really don't know who to root for. In fact, I have never felt more conflicted in my life (well, I guess I should say I have never felt more conflicted about something that ultimately means so little to me). … continue reading

It’s T-minus seven days to Halloween weekend, and you know what that means, right? It means that it’s time to find a costume. But before you grab that bed sheet and just pass yourself off as Casper again, why not take a cue from the stars instead? Look, wasn’t it nice of Bones stars Emily Deschanel/Wonder Woman and Michaela Conlin/Cher (with Catwoman Tamara Taylor hiding in the background) to model their outfits in advance for us?

It’s easier to look like a famous star than you might think. Here is a quick do-it-yourself guide to dressing up like your favorite celebrity this Halloween, complete with a handy checklist of supplies you’ll need for each look. … continue reading

I just came across this photo of Tina Turner and Janis Joplin performing at Madison Square Garden in 1969. It's Tina. And Janis. Together!

The photo is by Amalie R. Rothschild and is currently part of the Music and Fashion 1965–1975 exhibit at the Staley-Wise Gallery. Rothschild has taken some stunning shots of rock stars, many of which are included in her book Live at the Fillmore East: A Photographic Memoir.

I really can't fathom the idea of Janis and Tina on a stage together. Who needs caffeine (or whatever the crowd was on) with that kind of raw genius nearby? The idea of two talents and a microphone made me imagine some other rock duos (or folk duos or whatever-else duos) I'd like to see. Here are a few ideas. They may not really make much sense, but that's why I'm calling them fantasy duos.

Stevie Nicks and Amy Winehouse
"Rhiannon" meets "Rehab" — how great would that be? But Stevie might have flashbacks when confronted by Winehouse's in-your-face hedonism. She would make her cry, make her break down!

… continue reading

I spend most of my time hiding my iPod from Sarah since she tends to "borrow" it for my '70s, '80s and 90s music. But she recently found where I'd hidden it and teased me about one of my playlists, "Hot Rocker Chicks." What can I say, the women rockers in this playlist are hot!

Since I can't find a way to talk about hot rocker women on our video blog "She Made Me Watch This" (we only discuss TV shows and movies), I thought I'd share my Hot Rocker Chicks playlist here. As a pre-emptive disclaimer, I don't consider these guilty pleasure songs, but if that keeps me from looking too shallow, then they are!

"Kiss Me Deadly" by Lita Ford

Sarah and I were in Palm Springs with scribegrrrl when scribegrrrl posted "These '80s sisters are twisted" and added "Kiss Me Deadly." Sarah had to listen to scribegrrrl and me go on and on about how hot Lita Ford was in the video.

I'm not a fan of Sarah's guilty pleasure song, "Close My Eyes Forever" by Lita Ford and Ozzy Osbourne — the only Lita Ford song I play and watch is "Kiss Me Deadly." Have you seen Lita slink around at the beginning of the video? She's in black. Has long, blond hair. And she's hot! I'm a sucker for blondes with long hair dressed in black (that's how Sarah got me).

Here's the video: … continue reading

As Time magazine points out, MTV isn't anyone's primary source of music videos these days. But the Video Music Awards still have a home on the channel. This year's nominees include Beyoncé (seven nominations), Rihanna (five nominations) and Amy Winehouse (three nominations). Those three are nominated for Female Artist of the Year, along with Fergie and Nelly Furtado.

The Best New Artist nominees include Winehouse, Lily Allen and Carrie Underwood. Meanwhile, Avril Lavigne's "Girlfriend" is nominated for Monster Single of the Year, which seems perfectly appropriate to me, especially in the sense of City-Eating, Village-Decimating, Brain-Sucking Single of the Year.

If Rihanna wins, she'll match her Moonman statuette:

Beyoncé's slew of nominations include four for "Beautiful Liar," her duet with Shakira. I still don't really know what the "Liar" part is about, but the "Beautiful" is clear.

And here's Amy Winehouse in the "Rehab" video, which is nominated for Video of the Year. Yes, yes, yes. … continue reading

Summer is almost upon us, and you know what that means. Well, if you're me, it means a jacked electric bill because of my incessant need for air conditioning.

But summer also means summer concerts. In the coming months, you can catch Queen Latifah, Nelly Furtado, Norah Jones, Cyndi Lauper's True Colors tour, Bjork, India.Arie, and, of course, the Indigo Girls.

Every time a performer hits the road, a contract is written between the artist and the venue. The best parts of these contracts are the riders: the list of performers' demands to make the road seem less hellish. Whether it be fresh flowers, obscure beer or clean socks, you'd better believe they get what they want.

Courtesy of the Smoking Gun, here are a few highlights from some female artists' tour riders. (For clearer images and full riders, click the artist's name or the rider excerpt to go to the Smoking Gun site.) … continue reading

Last night I caught the Amy Winehouse show at the Highline Ballroom in NYC. It was great — I'm still basking in the afterglow. Here's my rundown of why.

… continue reading

17. Her hair. Seriously, how does she maintain that? She was petting it throughout the show, like it was a small creature. It very well might be.
16. The Dap Kings. They usually perform with Sharon Jones, but they fit perfectly into the Winehouse groove. My girlfriend couldn't get over the growl of the baritone sax.
15. She doesn't even need rehab, no, no, no. The rumors of her impending demise are greatly exaggerated. She looked fine to me.
14. The backup singers. Two cute suited men doing choreography and hand moves worthy of the Platters or the Five Stairsteps. Swoon!
13. Her tattoos. They seem so haphazard, which only makes them cooler.
12. The way she rolled her eyes when the crowd expressed disappointment as she announced the last song. "Oh, you know we'll be back. You've been to a few concerts, I've done a few concerts. Come on."

One of the wonders of The Internets — beside reading this amazing, spectacular, fantabulous blog (What? You're here, aren't you?) — is that you can be transported magically to another time and place without a plane ticket, time machine or cavity search (airport security has gotten way out of hand).

Much to my delight, a full concert (a March performance in Amsterdam) by my musical crush du jour, Amy Winehouse, is available for download courtesy of the Culture Bully. I've seen the talented, tattooed singer perform only once, when she made her American television debut on the Late Show with David Letterman. She seemed nervous and rushed as she jittered her way through a version of "Rehab." Plus, her song choice, while catchy, didn't display all that her sultry-barroom-meets-'60s-soul voice can do.

(Click "read more" for more heady Winehouse.) … continue reading

by Dorothy Snarker

The tattooed lady has been turning heads since long before Groucho Marx made Lydia the most famous one around. Before the lower back tattoo became the calling card of a generation of wannabe wild children, lesbians were rocking the ink with defiant flare. The tattoo even made No. 3 on the definitive list of Top 11 Lesbian Fashion Accessories (beaten only by the white ribbed tank top and the tie). But before we start a discourse on the geopolitical and sociological significance of tattoos on women, let's be honest with ourselves: They just look hot. Really, really hot. And on these ladies, they look even hotter.

With that, I give you my completely unscientific, but totally smoking, list of the Top 10 Tattooed Ladies.

10. Helen Mirren: The queen's got ink. The tattoo -- a small, interlaced symbol on her left hand -- is a remnant from her bad girl 20s when she "got very drunk on brandy and woke up with it the next day." I couldn't love her more.

9. Drew Barrymore: Doesn't part of you miss the old Drew? Sure, she is America's sweetheart now, but sometimes I long for the girl who would flash her tats — not to mention David Letterman — with pride.

8. Lena Headey: After Imagine Me & You made her every lesbian's favorite florist, fans were left wondering whether those tattoos were real. Turns out, yes. Yay for flower girls.

7. Eve: Placement is everything.

6. Amy Winehouse: Girl's got soul. And girl's also got naked girls tattooed onto her body. Works for me.

(Click "read more" to read the top 5.) … continue reading

Amy Winehouse's second album, Back to Black, a follow-up to her debut smash Frank (2003), is finally available today in the United States, and if you haven't heard her before, you're in for a treat. Back to Black is a soulful, bluesy album of breakup and makeup songs, all filtered through Winehouse's unique take on 1960s-era girl groups. There are infectious choruses that hearken back to the Supremes, but instead of warbling "Baby I need your love," Winehouse is declaring in her sultry, almost nonchalant voice, "They tried to make me go to rehab I said no no no/Yes I've been black but when I come back no no no."

And the second single, "You Know I'm No Good," is a brutal acknowledgement that yeah, she can cheat and she can lie, but when she sings "I told you I was trouble/You know that I'm no good," somehow you just want to forgive her.

My favorite track on the album (so far, anyway) is definitely the title track, "Back to Black," an account of spiraling into depression after a breakup. Sounds miserable, true, but for some reason Winehouse's lyrics and her Nina Simone-esque, smoky vocal tones make the misery feel a little bit like intoxication. Go to amywinehouse.com to get a sneak preview of the video for this song. … continue reading