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Visa too little too late
09/02/2008 13:02 - (SA)
London - British singer Amy Winehouse's visa to the United States has been granted, but the troubled star will not be travelling to the Grammy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles to perform in person, her representatives said on Friday.
Winehouse and her acclaimed Back to Black album are nominated for Grammys in six categories, and she had been due to perform at the ceremony itself Sunday. But her application for a visa was originally denied under US immigration rules regarding the "use and abuse of narcotics," a US State Department official said earlier on Friday.
As a British citizen, Winehouse would not normally need a visa to enter the United States - unless she wanted to work or perform.
The State Department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because internal application deliberations by the US Embassy in London are confidential, said Winehouse had contested the ruling in an appeal to the US Department of Homeland Security.
The reversal did not come fast enough. The Outside Organisation, which represents the singer, said Winehouse was grateful for the decision to grant her a visa, but would have to skip the trip "due to the logistics involved and timing complications."
The organisation said she would instead be performing live via satellite from a studio in London.
Rocky road to success
"She is looking forward to being a part of the 50th Annual Grammy Awards with her Sunday night performance and to going back to the US soon," Outside said.
Winehouse's deep, brassy voice and soul-pop songs have wowed fans on both sides of the Atlantic, but she is almost as well known for her chaotic personal life as her critically acclaimed music. Appeals from concerned family members have been publicized by British tabloid newspapers and magazines, while her husband, Blake Fielder-Civil, is in jail awaiting trial on charges of assault.
Last month, The Sun newspaper ran still images from a video allegedly showing Winehouse smoking crack.
Shortly thereafter, Winehouse entered a London rehabilitation centre, and has been questioned by police.
Outside said earlier Friday that she was leaving the centre to prepare for her performance, but that she would remain under medical supervision.
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South Africa
