Jenny Owen Youngs

Jenny Owen Youngs

Youngs performing, as the opening act for Vienna Teng, in Portland, Oregon's Mississippi Studios. Photo by Adam J. Manley.
Background information
Born November 22, 1981
Genres Indie Pop, Alternative, Indie Folk
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter
Instruments Vocals, guitar, bass, flute, tuba
Years active 2005–present
Labels Nettwerk
Website jennyowenyoungs.com

Jenny Owen Youngs (born November 22, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter. She is from Montclair, New Jersey.[1]

Music career

Youngs grew up playing the flute in elementary school and the tuba in junior high school. At age 14, she began to play the guitar. She graduated from State University of New York at Purchase with a degree in studio composition.

Her album Batten the Hatches was recorded with borrowed equipment at SUNY-Purchase and self-released in 2005.[2] In 2006, a song from that album, "Fuck Was I", appeared in the second season premiere of Showtime's Weeds, resulting in Batten the Hatches being re-released on April 10, 2007 with new artwork and an extra track ("Drinking Song")[3] on the Canadian indie label Nettwerk. "Fuck Was I" was also released on Weeds: Music from the Original Series, Vol. 2.

In addition to her solo career, she is in the band The Robot Explosion, a side project with fellow musicians and friends Bess Rogers, Andrew Futral, and Saul Simon-MacWilliams. She also took part in an online Podcast through Myspace with Bess Rogers and Andrew Futral, entitled 'Once More With Feeling' (named after the musical episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer).

Youngs has also toured with Vienna Teng, opening for the singer on the Green Caravan Tour, and opened for Aimee Mann at London's indigO2 on 27 July 2007. Youngs more recently toured with Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet Sprocket in August 2007, and with Sean Hayes, with whom she co-headlined. She traveled to cities in Belgium, Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden in November and December 2007.

Youngs released her second album, Transmitter Failure, on May 26, 2009. Youngs supported Regina Spektor in her 2009 tour promoting the album Far.

She has collaborated with Xian Hawkins under the moniker Bell Horses, which resulted in the album This Loves Last Time (2009). In the fall of 2009, Youngs performed alongside Chuck Ragan, Jim Ward, Tim Barry, Joey Cape, Dave Hause, Frank Turner and several others as part of the 2009 Revival Tour.[4]

Youngs covered "Have You Forgotten" by Red House Painters for American Laundromat Records's charity CD "Sing Me To Sleep - Indie Lullabies" released in Spring 2010. Tanya Donelly, Dean & Britta, Say Hi, Julie Peel, Stars, The Real Tuesday Weld, and others contributed to the project, which benefits children with cancer and rare blood disorders.

In March 2010, Youngs toured with Bess Rogers and Allison Weiss on their 'Spring Break Forever Tour', after which she flew out to the United Kingdom to support Motion City Soundtrack on their London, Manchester, Birmingham and Glasgow tour. She headlined a show at "Monto Water Rats" in London in April 2010.

On July 1, 2010, Youngs launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund her third album and reached her goal of $20,000 in 28 hours. Her drummer, Elliot Jacobson, had his chest waxed as an incentive to reach the goal. The campaign ended on August 13, 2010 with a total of $38,543 and 646 backers.

On February 7, 2012 the Kickstarter-backed third studio album, titled An Unwavering Band of Light was released.

In December 2012, she began her Exhibit project in which she visited a New York City museum one a week, recording a song inspired by her visit within the same week. The album was released on Bandcamp and consists of 8 tracks.[5]

In January, 2013, Youngs was announced to rejoin The Revival Tour, where she performed alongside Chuck Ragan, Rocky Votolato, Dave Hause, Jenny O., and Tim McIlrath of Rise Against.[6]

Personal life

On June 12, 2013, Youngs came out as a lesbian, announcing that she was "super gay", and that she was engaged to marry her girlfriend Kristin Russo.[7][8] On August 25th, 2013, they were married.

Discography

Albums

Year Album details
2005 (re-released 2007) Batten the Hatches
  • Released:
  • Label: self-released (re-released by Nettwerk)
  • Format: CD
2009 Transmitter Failure
  • Released: May 26, 2009
  • Label: Nettwerk
  • Format: CD
2012 An Unwavering Band of Light
  • Released: February 7, 2012
  • Label: self-released
  • Format: CD, LP

Singles

EP

Demos

References

  1. ↑ La Gorce, Tammy. "Sure, I Rock, but I Need Health Care", The New York Times, May 24, 2006. Accessed October 24, 2007. "To get it, Ms. Owen Youngs, 24, who shares an apartment in Montclair with a roommate, drives an hour northwest every weekday to Shanachie Records in Newton."
  2. ↑ "Nothing to Write Home About with Matt Pryor". 2014-04-04. Retrieved 2014-08-04.
  3. ↑ "Official Site".
  4. ↑ "About The Tour". Revival Tour. Retrieved 2013-06-24.
  5. ↑ "EXHIBIT | Jenny Owen Youngs". Jennyowenyoungs.bandcamp.com. 2012-12-04. Retrieved 2013-12-05.
  6. ↑ "Coming To A Town Near You: The 2013 Revival Tour". American Songwriter. 2013-01-11. Retrieved 2013-06-24.
  7. ↑ "Dear friend, I’m writing to tell you, among other". Everyoneisgay.tumblr.com. 2013-06-12. Retrieved 2013-06-24.
  8. ↑ Sieczkowski, Cavan (17 June 2013). "Jenny Owen Youngs Gay: Folk Singer Comes Out, Reveals She Is Engaged". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 17 June 2013.

External links