Amy Winehouse was born into a Jewish family with a history of jazz musicians. She grew up in the suburb of Southgate, North London, and attended Ashmole School. At around age 10, Winehouse founded a short-lived amateur rap group called Sweet 'n' Sour, as Sour. She described the group as "the little white Jewish Salt 'n' Pepa". She attended the Sylvia Young Theatre School aged 12 but was expelled at 13 for "not applying herself" and piercing her own nose. She later attended the BRIT School in Selhurst, Croydon.
She grew up listening to a diverse range of music (from Salt 'n' Pepa to Sarah Vaughan) and received her first guitar aged 13. After her friend, soul singer Tyler James, gave her demo tape to an A&R person, she was discovered and began singing professionally at age 16. She signed to her current record label, Island/Universal, under management company 19 Management. (Via Wikipedia). (photo via her webpage).