The song “Valerie” might have been playing on my laptop the very moment that soulful singer Amy Winehouse passed away. I’ve been playing it often lately—ever since Hannah and Alex sang it together on The Glee Project and reminded me about how much I love it—but now that she is gone, and at such a young age, I get a little teary-eyed when I play it.

Winehouse’s death isn’t affecting me like Heath Ledger’s did, which felt as if a friend had died; but it does really feel like a tragic blow to the music community. I know people loved to joke about her and her addictions; even said Glee Project contenders, and especially judges, joked about her, telling Alex he should have dressed as her in drag, and that it “wouldn’t take much,” just a mop and a bottle.  Everyone seemed to take such fun in ridiculing Winehouse, which I just don’t get; I don’t see people doing the same to, say, Steven Tyler or Keith Richards, or any other rock stars, for that matter. Why was Winehouse such an easy target?

She was, after all, the winner of at least five Grammys that I know of, and that voice! It was one of the most amazing, husky sounds we’ve had since Janis Joplin or Grace Slick. We don’t get a lot of female performers like that—let alone pop star performers; they’re usually buried in the indie scene and hard to find. Winehouse’s sound was both unique and moving, and when she sang “I’m No Good,” you believed her. Perhaps that honesty and raw power is what made people feel as if they could make fun of her so readily, when other stars only hinted at their drug and alcohol abuse in their music (though not in their actions, of course).

I can’t play “Rehab” without it getting stuck in my head, either. Her singing was so powerful and soulful, a combination of modern star and smoky jazz singer from decades past all melded into one belt-worthy combination. It might sound like a flippant way of regarding drug dependency, but doesn’t the song mimic how we’ve seen so many of our loved ones—or even ourselves—ignore our own destructive problems in the past?

I just hate that Winehouse died, period—but I especially hate that she died in such an unforgiving world that judged her every day, making jokes about her problems so flippantly without care. Isn’t the addiction of any person serious enough to honor, the rehabilitation attempt of anyone commendable as they try to better themselves rather than succumb to their addictions?

In the end, could she have been saved by a more understanding world, a less ridiculed image? Perhaps. As of this post, the cause of her death remains unknown. But I think it’s safe to say that we could all use a little more support in the world—pop stars and average Janes alike. And it’s also safe to say that Amy Winehouse will be greatly missed, at least in this household.