Jewel Biography

Jewel Kilcher was born in Payson, Utah in 1974 but moved to Homer, Alaska as a child. Jewel was lucky enough to grow up in a musical household; her parents were singer/songwriters and by the age of six Jewel was occasionally performing alongside them at local tourist attractions. Her parents divorced while she was young, and she chose to tour with her father for seven years before attending Michigan’s Interlochen Fine Arts Academy.

It was at the academy that Jewel began to write her first songs. After graduating, she moved to San Diego, near her mother, and began performing in local coffeehouses. Jewel’s impressive performances spread by word of mouth, and she established a strong local following. By 1995, Jewel had been signed to a major record label and two years later, Pieces of You, her debut, was released to extraordinary success. While it was nearly a year after its release before it even showed on the charts, on the strength of “Who Will Save Your Soul” the album eventually became a major hit.  The chart-toppers “Foolish Games” and “You Were Meant For Me” followed, and Jewel’s career was well on its way.

Spirit followed in 1999, along with Jewel’s release of Night Without Armor, a collection of spoken word poetry. This Way came in 2001, followed by 0340, a more dance-pop album, in 2003, and then Goodbye Alice in Wonderland, in 2006. In 2008, Jewel released her first country music album, Perfectly Clear, and the album debut at number one on the charts. “Stronger Woman” entered the charts in the Top Twenty, and the follow-up single, “I Do,” was equally successful. 

In 2009, Jewel returned with Lullaby, featuring the artist’s interpretation of a variety of children’s lullabies, including “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” and in 2010, she released “Stay Here Forever,” and “Satisfied” off her new album Sweet and Wild. An additional album release is anticipated for 2013, and she continues to write, record, and perform.