Jade Bird In Concert

The title of Jade Bird’s debut 2017 EP, Something American, was no false advertisement — the record’s wistful, dust-covered balladry and gospel-inspired belters exuded a pure Southern soul. But the EP’s authentically rootsy Americana is all the more impressive given that Jade Bird (her real name) isn’t actually American — she hails from Hexam, a small town located in the northeast of England. (Tellingly, the front cover of Something American depicts the singer sitting in a movie theater with a stock image of some American frontier displayed on the screen.) But from an early age, Bird became well acquainted with the wandering troubadour spirit at the core of all great country music. Born to a father serving in the British armed forces, she bounced around England, Germany, and the U.S. as a child, before settling in Wales with her mother and grandmother following her parents’ separation. Using her grandmother’s acoustic guitar, a 12-year-old Bird began teaching herself how to play while listening to Neil Young and Bob Dylan records. After paying her dues on the open-mic circuit, she earned a placement at the Brit School, a renowned performing arts academy. Shortly before graduating, she recorded a demo in the bathroom of a friend’s home (“the acoustics were great,” she quipped to the BBC) and landed a management deal that led to her recording Something American with producer Simone Felice (of the Felice Brothers) for Glassnote Records (home to Phoenix, CHVRCHES, and Mumford & Sons, among others). Released months before her 20th birthday, the EP made Bird an instant sensation in roots-music circles, with the singer landing an appearance on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert and a nomination for BBC’s Sound of 2018 honors. But subsequent singles have shown Bird is no mere honky-tonk woman. In the run-up to her self-titled 2019 debut, Bird dropped the singles “Lottery” and “Uh Huh,” which retain the acoustic earthiness of her previous work, but are infused with a grittier, feistier spirit that betrays her affinity for alt-rock icons like Patti Smith and Alanis Morissette.