Jade Bird — the 23-year-old British singer-songwriter whose dreamy sound is influenced by everyone from Joni Mitchell to Stevie Nicks to Alanis Morissette — lands in Milwaukee one month after the release of her second studio album, Different Kinds of Light.
Some of the new material reportedly is the result of the song-a-day challenge Bird undertook during the COVID-19 lockdown, while other tracks are based on world travels stemming from her newfound success. The album is produced by Dave Cobb, whose resume includes John Prine, Sturgill Simpson and Lady Gaga.
Bird’s self-titled debut, released in 2019, earned her multiple award nominations, and two early singles from Different Kinds of Light — “Headstart” and the “Open Up the Heavens” — landed on the U.S. Adult Alternative Airplay charts.
Tours with the likes of Jason Isbell, The Lumineers and Father John Misty helped prepare Bird for greater success. Her Summerfest performance will follow a series of dates in the United Kingdom, where she still generates a buzz — even though she now lives in Austin, Texas. NME.com, a British music website, posted a lengthy piece on Bird in July that covered her obsession with America, her ardent feminism and her refusal to be pigeonholed by genres.
“There are so many preconceptions with me,” Bird said. “But I am a fan of music first. I’ve been listening to the Stone Roses since I was 14. I love Elizabeth Fraser [of Cocteau Twins] and PJ Harvey, as well as Dolly Parton. And I can pull from stuff like that easily because it’s so true to me.”
Jade Bird has taken flight, and she’s about to go higher.
