by request
Artist Biography
by Jason Ankeny
Singer/songwriter
Jill Sobule
rose to fame on the strength of her 1995 hit single "I Kissed a Girl," a
tongue in cheek nod to the media's fascination with "lesbian chic."
Born in Denver, CO in 1961,
Sobule
grew enamored of rock music at a young age, but did not seriously
consider a career as a performer until she spent her junior year of
college abroad in Spain. Upon her return to the U.S., she dropped out of
school to devote her full energies to music, but her work found little
success as she battled with depression and anorexia. In 1990,
Sobule finally made her debut with
Things Here Are Different, which the songwriter recorded with producer
Todd Rundgren. The album vanished from sight upon its release, however, and she was dropped by her label, MCA; disheartened and destitute,
Sobule moved to Los Angeles and took a job as an assistant to a wedding photographer.
Sobule's
fortunes turned when her lawyer played her demo tape for an Atlantic
Records executive, who was so impressed by the contrast her winsome,
folk-flavored pop offered in comparison to the then-current chart
dominance of grunge that he quickly signed her to a contract. After the
1995 release of
Jill Sobule
and the subsequent popularity of "I Kissed a Girl," she scored another
hit with the satirical "Supermodel," which was featured prominently in
Amy Heckerling's comedy smash
Clueless. The LP
Happy Town followed in 1997, impressing critics with a new level of depth and maturity; unfortunately, it didn't match
Sobule's
level of commercial success, and Atlantic dropped her from its roster.
She took some time off from her solo recording career to regroup, and
joined
Lloyd Cole's new backing band
the Negatives as a guitarist in 1999. After landing a new recording contract with Beyond,
Sobule returned in 2000 with a new album,
Pink Pearl.
In the years that followed, she dabbled in off-Broadway musicals, made
an appearance on NBC's West Wing, composed songs for a Nickelodeon
series called Unfabulous, and played a busking musician in the indie
film Mind the Gap, a movie that featured songs included on 2004's
Underdog Victorious.
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