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Katherine Meizel, Bowling Green State University
(THE CONVERSATION) Like Amy Winehouse, “Back to Black,” the new biopic about the late British singer, has been no stranger to controversy.
In the case of the film, opinion has been fiercely split about director Sam Taylor-Johnson’s decision to have actress Marisa Abela sing – instead of lip-sync to – Winehouse’s recordings.
Some viewers have lauded Abela’s voice. Others lamented that she sounds “nothing like” Winehouse, or questioned why anyone would even try to imitate such a “unique” voice.
As a music scholar who studies voice and identity, I see two elements stoking this dissonance.
First, Winehouse’s distinctive sound came from her own imitative abilities: She borrowed from a long history of mainly Black women singers.
Second, some viewers seem to want Abela’s voice to be a carbon copy of Winehouse’s. But as I’ve…