Jill Sobule, a trailblazing singer known for her gentle defiance, passed away in a house fire on Thursday, May 1.
She was known for hit songs like Supermodel, and I Kissed a Girl, which is believed to be the first openly gay-themed song to break into the Billboard Top 20 despite being banned on several southern radio stations.
Her body was found in a home in Woodbury, Minnesota.
Trailblazing singer Jill Sobule passed away at the age of 66
The American singer tragically lost her life at the age of 66 after three decades in the music business.
She “was a force of nature and human rights advocate whose music is woven into our culture,” her manager, John Porter, said in a statement.
John said he was having “so much fun” working with her, and her passing marked the loss of a “client and friend.”
Her song I Kissed a Girl is believed to be the first openly gay-themed song to break into the Billboard Top 20
“I hope her music, memory, & legacy continue to live on and inspire others,” he added.
Born in Denver in 1959, Jill released her first album, Things Here Are Different, in 1990.
Her eponymous 1995 album drew immense success and included the satirical anthem Supermodel, featured in the movie Clueless.
Image credits: Jill Sobule
The album also included I Kissed a Girl, which paved the way for more LGBTQ+ pop stars to find mainstream success. The song came long before Katy Perry’s unrelated 2008 song with the same title, I Kissed a Girl.
“Every day, I get an email or comment where someone says, ‘Thank you for that song. That meant a lot to me when I was a kid.’ And that’s pretty great,” Jill told Toledo Blade in 2024.
She spoke about being bisexual and the struggles that came with it as an artist.
Jill came out as bisexual and spoke about the struggles of being a queer artist
“All anyone wanted to know was, ‘What was I?’” she told The New York Times in a 2002 interview.
“It was a weird thing because there was a part of me that wanted to say I’m bisexual, but I just didn’t want to get into that,” she said.
“There was a big debate about me, and people were saying, ‘Oh, she’s such a closet case — she won’t come out and say she’s a lesbian.’ And other people were saying, ‘Oh, she’s a heterosexual woman trying to catch a lesbian trend,’” the singer went on to say. “You couldn’t win.”
The satirical anthem Supermodel was featured in the movie Clueless
Across more than a dozen albums, Jill sang songs that touched upon topics like LGBTQ+ identity, mental health, consumerism, shoplifting, and reproduction.
Jill also starred in an off-Broadway autobiographical musical called F*** 7th Grade, which had four theatrical runs in three years.
In an interview with The Associated Press about her musical in 2023, she said she had yet to do her “best.”
Image credits: iamsunnystream
“In a good way, I feel like I’m still a rookie,” she said. “There’s so much more to do, and I haven’t done my best yet.”
She also once appeared in a The Simpsons episode in 2019 to sing a song as herself.
Tributes came pouring in after the news of the singer’s passing
“Jill Sobule was so special. Heartbreaking news,” actress Carrie Coon wrote on social media.
“No one made me laugh more. Her spirit and energy shall be greatly missed within the music community and beyond,” Craig Grossman, her booking agent, said in a statement.
Netizens also expressed grief and said it was a “rough way to go.”
“That’s so sad horrible way to go,” another agreed.
“OMG, that is absolutely horrible!! My heart goes out to her loved ones,” one said.
Jill left behind her brother and sister-in-law, James and Mary Ellen Sobule, and her nephews, Ian Matthew and Robert
Another wrote,” This is truly awful news!!! She was amazing and gave a lot to the creative community. So sorry for her loss, the heartbreak for her loved ones, and for our collective loss.”
“BS sounds fishy to me everyone on Hollywood passing or moving out USA,” one said.
Jill left behind her brother and sister-in-law, James and Mary Ellen Sobule, and her nephews, Ian Matthew and Robert and Robert’s wife Irina, and a number of other cousins and friends.
The cause of the house fire is still under investigation.
Many shared their interactions with her following her tragic passing
