Jewel
Jewel, the singer and songwriter was born Jewel Kilcher on the 23rd of May 1974 in Payson, Utah. This popular recording artist who grew up in Alaska actually began her musical career at the tender age of six, when she joined her parents, singer-songwriters Atz Kilcher and Nedra Caroll, on stage. Even after her parents went on their separate ways and divorced, Jewel continued to tour with her farther for a number of years. When she turned 15, Jewel made a major change in her life; she began performing as a solo act. She won a vocal scholarship to Interlochen, a private school in Michigan dedicated to the arts. During her stay there, she started penning songs and took up the guitar. Later on, Jewel moved to San Diego, California to live with her mother. Eventually, she branched out on her own, ending up living in a van for a time as she tried to make it as a performer. Success, even at a modest level was not hard to find. With her beautiful voice and its impressive range, plus he poetic lyrics, Jewel was soon playing in coffeehouses in the San Diego area. She landed her first steady gig at the Innerchange frozen yogurt franchise in Pacific Beach. It was during one of her performances there, that she was discovered by record company scouts and by a music manager; they were immediately impressed by her raw talent, and in 1994, she inked a deal with Atlantic Records. Her debut album Pieces of You was released the next year; but it wasn’t until the next year, until 1996, that the album really took off. In the meantime, Jewel toured nonstop to promote her microdermabrasion machine reviews music. She even had the opportunity to serve as the opening act for two musical legends: Bob Dylan and Neil Young. All her hard work began to pay off. Her single “Who Will Save Your Soul” became a big hit, rising on the Billboard’s Top 100 Chart and reaching as high as top 11th spot. Then, two other songs from the album, “You Were Meant For Me” and “Foolish Games” were also well-received. With its combination of folk and pop dog wheelchair sensibility, Pieces of You went to sell around 11 million copies. Jewel managed to captivate many listeners with the heartfelt emotions she conveyed in her songs. In 1998, Jewel released her second album, Spirit, which showcased her talents as performer of folk music. It was filled with ballads and simple gas tankless water heater instrumentation. The songs “Hands and “Standing Still” were particularly popular with listeners. That same year, Jewel ventured into another arena; a collection of her poetry, A Night Without Armor, was published. It quickly became a best seller. Her third offering, This Way, which came out in 2001, had a lighter, more pop sound. But her true reinvention really came in 2003-04 by making a foray into dance music; surprising her longtime fans. The album featured the hit single “Intuition” that debuted at the number two spot on the Billboard 200 Album Chart. It wasn’t only her sound that was sporting something different; Jewel was looking different too. She was donning sexier, edgier clothing on stage and in her music videos. As 2006 came along, Jewel went back to her roots with the personal, folk-influenced album, Goodbye Alice in Wonderland. The album was a mild success. In November 2007, Jewel went for another type of musical transformation. After signing up with Valory Records, She began work on her first country album. The result was Perfectly Clear, which hit the stores in 2008 and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Album Chart. The album included the hit song “Stronger Woman.” In early 2009, she announced the that she was working on an album called Lullaby, a collection of lullabies for listeners of all ages; it was slated for a March 2009 release. The first single off that album was a remake of Judy Garland’s “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” was released on iTunes in March. So far, in her musical career, Jewel has sold more than 25 million albums. Aside from her music, Jewel has also tried her hand in acting. She made her acting debut in And Lee’s Civil War drama Rides with the Devil in 1999, starring Tobey Maguire and Skeet Ulrich. She has also appeared on television on shows such as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Las Vegas, and The Lyons Den.