Biography
Who is Birdy?
Early life and real name
Jasmine Lucilla Elizabeth Jennifer van den Bogaerde was born on May 15, 1996, in Lymington, England. Her father is Rupert Oliver Benjamin van den Bogaerde, a writer, and her mother is Sophie Patricia Roper-Curzon. She grew up at the family estate known as Pylewell Park near Lymington in Hampshire.
During her childhood, she attended Durlston Court Prep School in Barton on Sea. Later, she studied at Priestlands School and Brockenhurst College in the New Forest. Her mother played classical music and songs that influenced her musical style as she grew up.
How Birdy became famous
In 2008, Birdy won the Open Mic UK talent competition at the age of 12. She competed in the under-18s category and won the Grand Prize against 10,000 other contestants. During this event, she performed an original song titled So Be Free for an audience of 2,000 people.
Her major breakthrough came in January 2011 with a cover of the Bon Iver song Skinny Love. This track reached number 17 on the UK Singles Chart and hit number 1 in the Netherlands. The song was also featured in an episode of The Vampire Diaries in May 2011.
Career highlights and albums
Her second studio album, titled Fire Within, arrived in the UK on September 23, 2013. This era included the single Wings, which was used in Lloyds Bank advertisements in 2015. In 2014, she won the Best International Rock/Pop Artist award at the Echo Awards in Berlin.
The third studio album, Beautiful Lies, was released on March 25, 2016. This project featured singles such as Keeping Your Head Up and Wild Horses. She described the themes of this album as being about the process of growing up and the feeling of not wanting to accept change.
Family and background
Birdy comes from a family with English, Belgian, Dutch, and Scottish ancestry. Her maternal grandfather was Captain John Christopher Ingram Roper-Curzon, who held the title of 20th Baron Teynham. Her great-uncle was the actor Sir Dirk Bogarde.
She has two siblings, Jake and Caitlin, who were born in 1997 and 1999 respectively. Also, she has two older half-brothers named Moses and Sam from her father's previous marriage. Her brother Moses is a drummer who performed on the Shadows album by Native Roses.
Birthday and age
Birdy was born on May 15, 1996, which makes Birdy 30 years old today. That birthday falls under the Taurus sign. Birdy shares the date with 64 other famous people.
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