New boyfriend, new label… man, next thing you know, we’ll be seeing photos of Amy Winehouse without track marks down her arm. But until that day comes, we can all turn our attention to her newly minted Lioness Records, which will soon be releasing the debut from Dionne Bromfield — who just happens to be Winehouse’s 13 year-old goddaughter.
According to the Guardian, Winehouse has polished her godmotherly credentials by sinking an alleged one-million pounds into the release, bringing in artists such as Lady GaGa, Lemar and X Factor’s Eoghan Quigg to duet with the 13-year-old.
Bromfield first came to public attention last year in a YouTube video shot by Pete Doherty, where she sings Alicia Keys‘ “If I Ain’t Got You”. With Winehouse accompanies her on electric guitar and backing vocals, Bromfield shows considerable promise — and a whole lot of heartache for a (then) 12-year-old girl. The video has attracted nearly 170,000 views since May 2008.
Besides creating a record label to release her album, Winehouse has spent a reported £15,000 sending Bromfield to intensive singing classes in Los Angeles. She has also bought her a guitar – and started teaching her to play. “Dionne is young but she has more potential than any girl I’ve ever seen,” Winehouse told the Independent last year. “I know she’s got an advantage by knowing me but I’d put her in a room against anyone and she’d do the business.”
While we give kudos to Winehouse for both her gumption and family values, we suggest she heeds all of the warnings about the demise of traditional labels. Unless of course she has a 360-deal — assuming she knows what that means — then forget what Radiohead manager Brian Message says about record labels. There’s a lot worse things you can spend your money on, right?
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