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B shares how Jay-Z and his collaborators influenced her chart-topping 4.
By Jocelyn Vena
Beyoncé in <i>Complex</i> magazine
Photo: Thierry Le Gouès/ Complex
Beyoncé has said that she was "inspired by every type of genre" of music while making 4. But in a recent interview, she spoke in detail about how husband Jay-Z and other hip-hop artists became sonic touchstones while she recorded her fourth solo album.
"Jay had a CD playing in the car one Sunday when we were driving to Brooklyn," she tells Complex about hearing Odd Future's Frank Ocean, who co-wrote the 4 track "I Miss You." "I noticed his tone, his arrangements, and his storytelling. I immediately reached out to him — literally the next morning. I asked him to fly to New York and work on my record."
She also chose to work with Kanye West (who eventually produced "Party") after she heard "Runaway," which she admits, made her cry. "The fact that he's belting out his pain, his confusion, and his anger, with no pre-written lyrics, was so moving," she explained of her husband's frequent collaborator. "He's singing his heart out for five minutes. He is so vulnerable. I love when an artist can be so honest."
Of course, B acknowledged the direct influence of Jay's own work too. "Jay's music is more than music. His lyrics have fathered generations," she told the magazine. "All that he has overcome gives millions so much hope. There are moments when I see his lips moving, and I can see lyrics floating above his head, and I think, 'Wow! How did I get so lucky to be able to witness this level of genius so closely?' "
Beyoncé released her album in a season dominated by strong female voices, but she doesn't want any part in conversations that pit her against other divas.
"There is room on this earth for many queens," she said. "I have an authentic, God-given talent, drive and longevity that will always separate me from everyone else. I've been fortunate to accomplish things that the younger generation of queens dream of accomplishing. I have no desire for anyone else's throne. I am very comfortable in the throne I've been building for the past 15 years.
"I just want my legacy to be great music," she later added. "Someone who was a risk taker and someone who had songs that struck conversation and emotion."
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Back to Black singer's story littered with substance abuse and arrests.
By Jocelyn Vena
Amy Winehouse performs with Mark Ronson in July of 2010
Photo: Samir Hussein/ Getty Images
Amy Winehouse's success as an artist was equally matched by her trouble with substance abuse and the law. Shortly after releasing her star-making 2006 album, Back to Black, the London-born singer became a tabloid fixture, with the press constantly covering her professional ups as well as her personal downs. On Saturday, the singer was found dead in her London apartment.
Click for photos of Amy Winehouse's life and career.
While she had been a staple of the British music scene since releasing her debut album, Frank, in 2003, it was her 2006 album that launched her as an international star and ushered in a new sound that harked back to the girl-group days of the '50s and '60s, leading to a number of copy-cat artists releasing albums around the same time.
2007
On her 2006 track "Rehab," Winehouse chronicled her love of partying hard and her defiance to seek help for it, setting a course for the issues in her personal life. Midyear, Winehouse's camp began denying the singer had a substance-abuse problem, as she began to cancel dates, a string of events that would become commonplace in her short-lived career.
Even as the issues in her personal life began to cause speculation, her music career was thriving, with accolades flowing in from rappers like Jay-Z, who began appearing on remixes of her songs, broadening her appeal to a wider spectrum of audiences beyond retro-leaning hipsters.
But her legal troubles would make just as many headlines as her award wins and chart-topping success. In October 2007, she was arrested for marijuana possession, with her equally troubled husband, Blake Fielder-Civil, by her side in Norway.
Before the year's end, she would also have Visa problems and health issues, making shows hard to keep.
2008
As professional accolades flowed in, evidence of her drug problems became more and more evident. In January 2008, a video surfaced allegedly showing the singer smoking crack. Weeks later, she would check into rehab.
In February, she wasn't be able to attend the Grammys after her Visa was denied, however she did appear via satellite. At the show, she took home five trophies, including the big prize, Record of the Year.
As 2008 rolled along, authorities continually questioned the singer in a number of cases, including an assault case in April and a drug-related arrest in May tied to the video of her allegedly doing drugs. Those charges were later dropped.
In June of that year, she went public with the news that she had an early stage of emphysema, as confirmed by her father, who became her mouthpiece and her biggest supporter in the face of her personal adversities. Later in the year, she hit the stage again in shows that were both redeeming and disastrous.
2009
Things did not slow down for Winehouse in 2009. Her husband filed for divorce in January of that year, and in March, she had to cancel her Coachella set after being charged with assault in connection with a 2008 incident.
Regardless of her legal and health issues, she kept booking gigs, though not necessarily to successful results. She walked out early on a gig in St. Lucia in May.
By July, she was officially divorced and acquitted on the 2008 assault charges. Her big public appearance was at the U.K.'s V Festival in August.
However, by December, she was once again charged with assault in connection with another incident at a theater in the U.K. where she heckled a performance of "Cinderella" and reportedly assaulted theater manager Richard Pound, who complained that Winehouse had pulled his hair, punched him and kicked him when he asked her to move seats.
2010
After laying low for a good part of 2010, Winehouse appeared at a gig for her producer Mark Ronson in London, where she messed up the lyrics to their track "Valerie" and was seen drinking and being boisterous offstage. Despite the antics, she promised new music by early 2011, a promise she did not keep.
2011
Her last stint in rehab was reportedly in May 2011, however, her attempts to get clean never truly helped her defeat her demons. At a disastrous show in Belgrade in June, she showed up more than an hour late, then repeatedly left the stage mid-performance, forgot lyrics to her songs and even dropped a microphone. Shortly after, the singer canceled more tour dates.
On Saturday, Winehouse was found dead at age 27, just five weeks after her last show, leaving behind a legacy of fame for both her musical influence and her troubles.
How will you remember Amy Winehouse? Tell us on Facebook.
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