Phoebe Lucille Bridgers (born August 17, 1994) is an American singer-songwriter. Her indie folk music typically centers around acoustic guitar and electronic production, with melancholic lyrical themes. She has received four Grammy Award nominations, including Best New Artist.
Born in Pasadena, California, Bridgers performed music in her youth and was a member of Sloppy Jane. She released her debut solo album Stranger in the Alps in 2017, followed by Punisher (2020), both of which received critical acclaim. She is also a member of supergroup Boygenius, with whom she has released one self-titled EP and one album, and Better Oblivion Community Center, with whom she has released one self-titled album.
A frequent collaborator, she has worked with various artists including Taylor Swift, SZA, Kid Cudi, The 1975, Christian Lee Hutson, and The National. Bridgers holds progressive political views and has advocated and fundraised for various causes.
Bridgers was a member of various groups while still in high school, including Einstein's Dirty Secret and Sloppy Jane, and frequently played shows around Los Angeles as a solo act.[8][9] After deciding not to attend college to focus on her career, her growing presence in the L.A. music scene led to her befriending producer Tony Berg, who began working with her on her first album for free.[10] Playing in an Apple commercial with Sloppy Jane had given her some financial security, so she planned to complete her record and then sell it to a label, rather than attempting to get signed first. This allowed her much more time and creative freedom to create what would become Stranger in the Alps.[11] Around this time, Bridgers met American singer-songwriter Ryan Adams through mutual collaborators, and he put out her EP Killer on his label PAX AM. Bridgers also supported Julien Baker on her 2016 tour of the East Coast.[17][18]
In January 2017, Bridgers released the single "Smoke Signals" and opened for Conor Oberst on his European tour.[19] The two had met the previous summer at a secret showcase, organized by Oberst at the Bootleg Theater in Los Angeles. He and his Bright Eyes bandmate, Mike Mogis, contributed vocals and production to Stranger in the Alps. Bridgers joined The Joy Formidable and Ryan Adams for select dates on their respective U.S. tours before playing at South by Southwest in March 2017. In June 2017, Bridgers signed to independent label Dead Oceans.
She released her debut studio album, Stranger in the Alps, in September to critical acclaim. The album was produced by Tony Berg, Ethan Gruska and Rob Moose, all of whom would become consistent collaborators with Bridgers. To promote the album, Bridgers performed on CBS This Morning and the NPR Tiny Desk. Numerous songs from the record were featured in television productions throughout 2018, including Switched at Birth, Castle, Burden of Truth, Lethal Weapon and Trinkets, among others.
Bridgers has been referred to as a "serial collaborator" and has either been featured on or co-released tracks with: Lord Huron, Fiona Apple, Matt Berninger and the National, Manchester Orchestra, the 1975, Maggie Rogers, Kid Cudi, Taylor Swift, and SZA, among others. In addition, she has participated in full-album projects with Conor Oberst, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus.
In 2018, Bridgers team up with fellow indie singer-songwriters Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus to form the supergroup Boygenius, signed to Matador Records. They released three songs in August 2018 and subsequently announced an eponymous EP, which released on October 26, 2018, to widespread acclaim. Pitchfork called the collaboration "magic". The band toured the U.S. in November 2018, appearing on Late Night with Seth Meyers and the NPR Tiny Desk.
On December 5, 2018, Bridges released a Spotify Singles session recorded at Spotify Studios NYC featuring a performance of "Scott Street" and a cover of The Cure's song "Friday I'm in Love".
Bridgers and Conor Oberst announced the formation of their band, Better Oblivion Community Center, on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in January 2019. They released their debut album later that month through Dead Oceans. The band appeared on CBS This Morning, and Bridgers appeared for the third time on NPR's Tiny Desk series.
On February 26, 2020, Bridgers released the single "Garden Song" alongside its music video. In April, the 1975 released the song "Jesus Christ 2005 God Bless America" with her, ahead of their studio album Notes on a Conditional Form, which features Bridgers on three tracks. She was slated to tour with them in summer 2020 before the tour's cancellation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On April 9, 2020, Bridgers released "Kyoto" and announced on Instagram that her second album Punisher would be released on June 19, 2020.
She made her musical guest debut on February 6, 2021, the eleventh and 900th milestone overall episode of Season 46 of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Schitt's Creek star Dan Levy. She performed "Kyoto" and "I Know The End" and closing the performance by smashing her guitar on a fake stage monitor.
She returned to Saturday Night Live along with her bandmates Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus of the indie supergroup Boygenius, as they made their musical guest debut, as well as her 2nd musical guest appearance on November 11, 2023, the fourth episode of Saturday Night Live's 49th Season, hosted by actor Timothée Chalamet. They performed "Don't Strong Enough" and "Satanist". For both of their performances, they dressed as The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show. They also appear in the "Troye Sivan Sleep Demon" sketch.
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