Towa Bird Is Seizing the Moment

glamour.com:

are and TikTok has the ability to launch independent artists into superstardom, rock guitarist and singer-songwriter Towa Bird is seizing her moment.“I think it’s probably the best time to be a queer artist right now than it ever has been before,” says Bird, whose debut album, American Hero, comes out June 28. “You know when people are like, ‘I wish I was born in the ’70s,’ or, ‘I was born in the wrong generation?’ I’m like, ‘No, I'm definitely born in the right generation.’ I'm glad to be a TikTok generation kid.”You could say that Bird is part of two movements happening in the music industry right now.

Acts like Muna, , girl in red, and have helped usher in a moment of huge visibility for queer women in pop and indie music. Meanwhile, are successfully translating TikTok stardom into mainstream.Bird’s first big break came in when she went viral on TikTok with a cover of Tame Impala’s “The Less I Know the Better,” which she performed on her electric guitar from her London bedroom. “The first video that I ever posted went viral.

And so I went overnight from having zero followers to like 10,000 followers,” she says. Her second big break came when her TikTok covers caught the attention of Olivia Rodrigo, who invited her to play guitar on Driving Home 2 U (A Sour Film), Rodrigo’s documentary.Olivia Rodrigo and Towa Bird at the premiere of Driving Home 2 U (A Sour Film).“I was in the studio in London and I got a call from my managers,” Bird explains. “And they were like, ‘Okay, so there’s this thing that’s come up and we’re just wondering if you’re interested.’ And I was like, yeah, of course I’m fucking interested!” This was to be Bird’s first ever gig in the United States, as well as her entrée into the big leagues.Since.