Amy Winehouse and the "27 Club"

Jimi Hendrix
Janis Joplin
Jim Morrison
Kurt Cobain
Jean Michael-Basquiat
Freaky Tah of the Lost Boyz
Johnathan Brandis from the NeverEnding Story II

All influential and known celebrities and artists who came and touched our lives through music, art, television, and movies. All tragically and mysteriously died at the age of 27. It's sad when you think a celebrities career is just beginning to take off. It literally seems like they were here today and gone tomorrow. Now they are infamously a part of what is known as the "27 Club." The club in which famous people become inducted into when they die at the age of 27 through tragic causes.

In their deaths, lies a story. Nothing lasts forever. What can we learn from Amy Winehouse and the "27 Club?" Sure it's easy to give an "anti-drug" speech, but at the end of the day as we look at their careers, the lives they left, and the people who surrounded them there is a story lesson to be learned.

1. Live your life like it's your last day. It seems almost like these, and others, were at the height of their career. Things seems to be going to well, seeming so lucrative, and all of a sudden we get the breaking news of their deaths and find out even later that they were depressed and overwhelmed with the level of celebrity they received. No matter what, do what makes you happy. Whether it's picking up trash, inspiring others, teaching, or writing. Do what makes YOU happy. No one can live your life, but you!


2. Make your dreams a reality, despite the nay sayers. These folks lived a dream life we will never get to experience. They may have died suddenly at 27, but what they were able to accomplish is more than most of us will ever experience in our lives. Do what you can to even get a glimpse of your dream. It's worse to regret not trying to live out your dream or passion than to deal with the failure experienced trying.


3. "Yes" people are enablers, get rid of them. It's always great to have your ego stroked. We all want it, we sometimes need it. However, if you are around people who ONLY tell you how good, awesome, great, pretty, or smart you are how will you know what you need to do to get better and to grow? We need constructive criticism to progress. If all you hear is yes, how will you know how to handle the "no." We can only speculate that some of these celebrities died, especially the ones from suicide and drugs, because they had too many fans and not enough friends. Get rid of enablers, their bad for you.


4. Know when to ask for help. At the end of the day, we need help. In our darkest hour, for our progression and growth, just because. Help is available in many forms, what we have to do is learn to put our pride to the side and ask for it. I feel like if these artists were able to simply ask the right person for help, we would have had them for so much longer.


5. Empowerment is a very powerful tool we all need. Motivation. Inspiration. Empowerment. It's the tools that keep the positivity in and the negativity out. Find a mentor, speaker, book, counselor, or method to ensure that you ALWAYS have some form of empowerment and positive energy in your life.

Amy Winehouse [9.14.83-7.23.11]

Amy Winehouse was a great singer. Despite her vices and her troubles, she had a gift that she was able to share with the world...even for a little while. Unfortunately, she is now the newest member of the "27 Club." We may not ever know what problems she had in her life, but from the time we had her here...we can learn much from her and the other members of the "27 Club."

The Unemployed Entrepreneur