The Price of Fame
I like Amy Winehouse's music, but I can't say I approve of her drink and drug lifestyle. I've been reading about her latest run in with the law - for drug offences and assault - and can't help but wonder why so many talented stars frequently display such out of control behaviour.
Here is a young woman with tremendous ability and the world at her feet who feels the need to abuse her mind and body - it's a tragic case of self-loathing where there should only be pride and self-worth. It's an age-old story. From Judy Garland to Elvis Presley, Marlon Brando to Britney Spears - enormous success and adulation can turn what should be a personal heaven into a private hell. These stars get an enormous amount of adulation, and get given anything they want, so it's hardly surprising that so many of them lose their grip on reality.
The latest scandal saw Winehouse filmed smoking crack-cocaine and snorting ecstasy and cocaine. The question is, why would she allow herself to be filmed doing these things? In the light of Kate Moss and countless others being caught out on camera, it seems surprising that someone would shine a light on their illegal activites.
Then again, maybe that's what it's all about for these people - once they've experienced a certain level of attention and interest in their lives, they become addicted to the very notion of fame. And when the public seem far from dismayed at their behaviour, they give more of the same. Entertainers by nature give their public what they want - even if it's a drug-addled tragi-comedy being played out in the media.
For Amy Winehouse and others, this is a heavy price to pay for all the rewards their success has brought. The only real hope for the future is that the public at large become less interested in the soap opera of celebrity and more interested in the actual skills and talents of the stars they seek to make, break, canonize and shoot down.