Remembering Jill Sobule, 1959-2025
Jill Sobule, 66, was groundbreaking and much revered and loved singer-songwriter and human rights activist best-known for her 1995 breakthrough hit single “I Kissed a Girl” (the first openly LGBTQ-themed song to crack the Billboard Top 20) and “Supermodel” from that year’s popular “Clueless” film soundtrack. Both songs appear on the first of her 12 albums. In the week since her tragic death in a Minnesota house fire on May 1, 2025 sent shockwaves through the folk and singer-songwriter communities, many of her fellow artists have expressed their grief and shared personal reflections on Facebook. A sampling follows.
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FAI Folk Radio Charts – March 2025
Lucy Kaplansky had the top album (The Lucy Story: Unreleased and Rare Tracks 1976-2023) and was the most-played artist on folk radio during March 2025, while “Which Side Are You On?” by Artists for Action was the month’s top song. So say charts compiled by Folk Alliance International based on radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in folk-based music on the radio.
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International Folk Music Award Winners Honored During Conference in Montreal
The 2025 International Folk Music Awards were presented on the opening night of the 37th annual Folk Alliance International Conference at Le Sheraton Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada last month. These included member-voted Best Album, Song and Artist of the Year (2024), as well as Lifetime Achievement Awards, Spirit of Folk Awards, the Clearwater Award, the People’s Voice Award, and the Rising Tide Award, in addition to inductions into the Folk Radio Hall of Fame.
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Halley Neal is 2023 SolarFest Singer-Songwriter Showcase Winner
Nashville, Tennessee-based singer-songwriter Halley Neal has been named the winner of the SolarFest 2023 Singer-Songwriter Showcase, which returns in July following a hiatus of several years. She and four finalists have been invited to perform of the festival’s solar-powered main stage in Brandon, Vermont on Saturday afternoon, July 15, and will also be awarded cash prizes. As the winner, Neal will be invited to perform a full set at next year’s festival as well.
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Entries Sought for SolarFest ’23 Singer-Songwriter Showcase
SolarFest -- slated for July 15-16, 2023 in Brandon, Vermont -- is again hosting a Singer-Songwriter Showcase following a hiatus of several years. It’s free to enter and open to all artists who write and perform original music and are not currently signed to a major recording label.
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NERFA Hosts Conference In-Person and Online
More than 400 performing artists, presenters, promoters, managers, agents, and others actively engaged in contemporary and traditional folk music will converge on Asbury Park, New Jersey, November 10-13, 2022 for the annual Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) Conference, while more will enjoy the event virtually.
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Winners Named in 60th Grammy Awards’ American Roots Music Field
Winners in the 60th Grammy Awards’ American Roots Music Field were recognized during a Premiere Ceremony that streamed online prior to The Recording Academy’s televised awards show on Sunday, January 28 from Madison Square Garden in New York City.
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Philadelphia Folk Festival Set for Aug. 17-20
Thousands of music lovers are expected to converge on Old Pool Farm in Upper Salford Township, near bucolic Schwenksville, Pennsylvania, Aug. 17-20, for the annual Philadelphia Folk Festival. Now in its 56th year, the event, produced and presented by the Philadelphia Folksong Society, a nonprofit arts organization, is the longest continuously running outdoor music festival of its kind in North America.
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