England’s Vocal Powerhouse, Birdy, Spreads Wings in Pittsburgh for The First Time.

Pittsburgh has become quite the Mecca for audio libations, attracting a slurry of big name artists over the years. From Beyoncé to Kenny Chesney, Pittsburghers don’t just love sports and cursing at people in traffic, they love music, too, and they’re not afraid to show it.

Birdy, born Jasmine Lucilla Elizabeth Jennifer van den Bogaerde (Seriously?), made her first voyage to Pittsburgh for a one night only performance, playing to a packed house of tweens and somewhat oddly aged adults.

Birdy’s musical stylings, advanced songwriting, and vocal intelligence far surpassed the bubble-gum-pop crowd in attendance…but the crowd is the crowd.

Birdy, who recently celebrated her 20th birthday, and the release of her second studio album, Beautiful Lies, which debuted in March of this year, delighted the crowd with newer songs, and a carefully curated selection of her older favorites such as Words as Weapons and Shelter. Her muted persona is further highlighted by immense vocal purity, as she closes the generational gap by offering substantial and relatable music to a global audience obsessed with nonsense wrapped in auto-tune.

And while she does appeal to the Taylor Swift crowd, depth and talent are Birdy’s most definable commodities.

The show was overall a great characterization of what artists like Birdy represent, an undaunting desire to preserve the inherent beauty of real music.

Photos by Julie Kahlbaugh