Jill Sobule, the groundbreaking singer-songwriter and activist whose 1995 song “I Kissed a Girl” is widely considered the first openly gay-themed song to crack the Billboard Top 20, died in a Minneapolis house fire early Thursday morning, her rep confirmed. She was 66.
Sobule’s unusually diverse three-decade/12-album career included that song as well as “Supermodel” from the film “Clueless” and, more recently, the Drama Desk-nominated autobiographical musical “Fuck 7th Grade,” which enjoyed four theatrical runs in three years. The original cast recording of the show is set to be released on June 6, alongside a special 30th anniversary reissue of her self-titled album, which features “I Kissed a Girl” and “Supermodel.”
She was scheduled to perform in her native Denver tomorrow night at at Swallow Hill Music’s Tuft Theater, “Jill Sobule presents: Songs From F*ck 7th Grade & More”; instead there will be an informal gathering hosted by her friend Ron Bostwick from 105.5 FM.
Her manager, John Porter, said in a statement: “Jill Sobule was a force of nature and human rights advocate whose music is woven into our culture. I was having so much fun working with her. I lost a client and a friend today. I hope her music, memory, & legacy continue to live on and inspire others.”
Ken Hertz, her longtime attorney, said, “Jill wasn’t just a client. She was family to us. She showed up for every birth, every birthday, and every holiday. She performed at our daughter’s wedding, and I was her ‘tech’ when she performed by Zoom from our living room (while living with us) during the pandemic.”
Born in Denver in 1959, Sobule released her Todd Rundgren-produced debut album, “Things Here Are Different,” in 1990; a second album was recorded with British singer Joe Jackson, but was not released. She signed with Atlantic in 1995 and enjoyed hits with her self-titled album, but the pop format constricted the wide-ranging topics and ideas of her often-witty songs — which have ranged from capital punishment to shoplifting, from anorexia to the MAGA movement — and over the following years she released music on independent labels while working on theatrical and television projects, including the theme for the Nickelodeon show “Unfabulous.”
In 2008 she became a pioneer of using crowdfunding to release albums, offering patrons everything from a free download along with the physical copy of the album (for $10) to the opportunity to sing on the record ($10,000). In less than two months she had reached her $75,000 target goal, via more than 500 donations, and released the album, “California Years,” in 2009 on her Pinko Records label. She used crowdfunding again a decade later for her “Nostalgia Kills” album.
A formal memorial celebrating her life and legacy will take place during the summer, her rep said.
She is survived by her brother and sister-in-law, James and Mary Ellen Sobule, and her nephews, Ian Matthew and Robert and Robert’s wife Irina.
