Amy Winehouse has posthumously received a BRIT Billion Award celebrating one Billion streams in the UK by the BPI, the representative voice for the UK’s world leading record labels and music companies.
Amy’s parents, Mitch and Janis, accepted the Award following the release of ‘Back to Black’ a new biographical film based on the life of Winehouse.
Amy Winehouse is rightly revered as one of the greatest artists in recent history. Her critically acclaimed debut album ‘Frank’ and masterpiece ‘Back to Black’, propelled her to global stardom.
Released in October 2006, ‘Back to Black’ is Winehouse’s most-streamed song in the UK, with over 150m streams. Certified 2x Platinum, the song peaked at Number 8 in the Official Singles Chart, and is followed closely by ‘Valerie’, Winehouse and Mark Ronson’s cover of the The Zutons’ single, with over 135m streams in the UK. ‘Tears Dry on Their Own’, ‘Rehab’, ‘You Know I’m No Good’, and ‘Love Is a Losing Game’, all taken from Winehouse’s chart-topping album ‘Back to Black’ all stand at over 50m streams.
Accepting the Award, Mitch and Janis said:
“We of course wish that Amy was here today accepting this award in person, but it’s amazing that she is still winning awards for her incredible talent and achievements. It’s wonderful that her music is being discovered by new audiences of young people who love it just as much as her contemporaries. We are so proud of Amy. Thank you.”
Officially launched in 2023, more than 25 artists have been recognised with a BRIT Billion award, including global icons such as The Rolling Stones, Queen, ABBA, and Whitney Houston, pioneering rap and hip-hop artists including AJ Tracey and Headie One, and chart-dominating pop artists and singer-songwriters, with the likes of Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Lewis Capaldi, and BRIT Award record-breaker RAYE all having received the Award.
The BRIT Billion award reflects the extent to which streaming has transformed the music landscape for artists and fans alike over the past decade – over 85% of the UK’s recorded music consumption now takes place through streaming, and in 2023 there were a record 180 billion audio streams in the UK in total. In the UK, more than 2,000 artists now annually amass at least 10 million audio streams of their music, while more than 10,000 artists are streamed over a million times.