After she won the Under 18s category of the UK talent contest Open Mic UK at the age of 12, Bogaerde was soon offered a publishing contract by Good Soldier Songs Ltd, run by Christian Tattersfield, chairman of Warner Music UK. In 2011, at the age of 14, she released a haunting cover version of the Bon Iver "Skinny Love", which reached #17 on the UK Singles Chart. The track was later featured in an episode of The Vampire Diaries.
Her self-titled debut album, "Birdy", was released on 4th November, 2011 and featured "Skinny Love" , "1901" and "People Help The People", other notable tracks from the album include James Taylor's" Fire and Rain" and “Terrible Love” The album reached #1 in Australia, Belgium and The Netherlands, it also peaked at #13 in the UK.
In 2011, "Skinny Love" sold 259,000 copies in the UK becoming the third biggest selling rock single of that year. As of August 2016, the song had sold almost 800,000 copies in the UK.
In 2012, Birdy released an 8 track EP " Live in London “ which featured several tracks from her debut album plus a version of the Ed Sheeran song "The A Team “and "Just a Game from “The Hunger Games”
In July 2013 Birdy announced via YouTube, that her 2nd album would be released later in the year. She also previewed two new songs "Wings "and "No Angel" which would both be featured on her second studio album "Fire Within"
Her second studio album, "Fire Within" was released 23rd September, 2013. It featured 11 original songs, either written or co written by Birdy including Strange Birds, co-written with Sia.
The first single from the album was “Wings” released as a digital download then officially released in the UK on 8th September 2013. The song reached #8 on the UK charts, becoming Birdy’s first UK top 10. It was also featured in an episode of The Vampire Diaries. Subsequent singles were “No Angel”, Light Me Up” and “Words as Weapons”
In 2014, Birdy submitted three songs to the soundtrack of the film “The Fault In Our Stars” which stars “Shailene Woodley” and “Ansel Elgort”. “Not About Angels” was the second released single from the soundtrack album. Other Birdy contributions were “ Tee Shirt" and “ Best Shot"
On 25th March 2016, Birdy's third album "Beautiful Lies" was released, it featured the singles, "Keeping Your Head Up" ,"Wild Horses" and "Words" Once again her songwriting abilities were evident as she wrote or co wrote all of the 14 tracks.
Also in 2016 she was featured on the "Sigma" single " Find Me which was only a minor success in the UK.
Her song Ghost In The Wind" also appeared on the soundtrack of the film The Edge Of Seventeen
After an extensive tour of USA and Asia, she took a break from music, only to return with a new single called “ Open Your Heart" in 2020. The song was featured on the 4 track EP called “Piano Sketches”
Birdy’s fourth studio album “Young Heart” was then released on 30th April 2021, the first single “ Surrender” was issued earlier in 2021, a day after she had announced that her new album was coming. Birdy described the album as a heartbreak album heavily inspired by Joni Mitchell’s “Blue”
2023 saw the release of Birdy's fifth studio album “Portraits” It was released on 18th August 2023. “Raincatchers” was issued as the first single, which had been released earlier in 2023. Subsequent singles from the album have since followed, “Heartbreaker”, “Your Arms” and “Paradise Calling”
Birdy's music is described as folk, pop, indie folk. She cites her early music influences as Classical Music and Pop music that her parents would play. along with her own influences, which are so evident in her music(Bon Iver, George Michael and Keane)
Album Discography:
Birdy (2011)
Fire Within (2013)
Beautiful Lies (2016)
Young Heart (2021)
Portraits (2023)
Sites: Discogs, Wikipedia and YouTube.
Automatic
Birdy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If I reach out for you (yeah, oh)
Will you pull me towards you? (Yeah, oh)
There's a voice that's callin' (yeah, oh)
Me into the forest in the night
And I hear you talkin' (yeah, oh)
And my heart is stallin' (yeah, oh)
Not gonna restart for you (yeah, oh)
Don't ask me to need you like that
Don't ask me to give what I can't
Don't ask me to love you
Don't ask me to love you, no
I, I can't cut through the static
Maybe I think too much about it
If I could love you automatic
I would
Oh, you make it sound so simple
Drop my guard and act on impulse
If I could love you automatic
I would
Love automatic, I would
Love automatic, I would
Love automatic, I would
Love automatic, I would love
If I numb my senses (yeah, oh)
Could I try pretendin'? (Yeah, oh)
Couldn't be so reckless (yeah, oh)
To hide in the corners of my mind
When I caught sight sterlin' (yeah, oh)
Couldn't say it for certain (yeah, oh)
That it won't hurt you (yeah, oh)
I know how to kill the fire
You know, I, I can't cut through the static
Maybe I think too much about it
If I could love you automatic
I would
Oh, you make it sound so simple
Drop my guard and act on impulse
If I could love you automatic
I would
Love automatic, I would
Love automatic, I would
Love automatic, I would
Love automatic, I would love
Oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
I would
Oh, oh, oh
Automatic, I would
Love automatic, I would
Love automatic, I would
Love automatic, I would
Love
The lyrics to Birdy's song "Automatic" explore themes of vulnerability, hesitation, and the struggles of opening up to love. The singer contemplates whether reaching out to someone will result in them pulling her closer or pushing her away. There's an underlying uncertainty and fear of getting hurt, as conveyed by the references to the forest at night and the hesitation to restart the heart. The chorus emphasizes the singer's inability to fully connect with the person she's addressing, as she acknowledges her own struggle to cut through the "static" and overthinking. She wishes that love could be effortless and automatic, where she could simply drop her guard and act on impulse. Ultimately, she longs for a love that is simple and easy, but acknowledges the difficulties that come with it.
Line by Line Meaning
(Yeah, oh) if I reach out for you (yeah, oh)
If I make an effort to connect with you
Will you pull me towards you? (Yeah, oh)
Will you bring me closer to you?
There's a voice that's callin' (yeah, oh)
There's an inner voice that's beckoning
Me into the forest in the night
Leading me into the unknown
And I hear you talkin' (yeah, oh)
And I hear your words
And my heart is stallin' (yeah, oh)
And my heart is hesitant
Not gonna restart for you (yeah, oh)
I won't reset or change for you
I've already cut the wire
I've already severed the connection
Don't ask me to need you like that
Don't expect me to require you in that way
Don't ask me to give what I can't
Don't demand me to provide something I'm unable to
Don't ask me to love you
Don't request me to love you
Don't ask me to love you, no
Don't even ask for my love
I, I can't cut through the static
I find it difficult to overcome the interference
Maybe I think too much about it
Perhaps I overanalyze the situation
If I could love you automatic
If I could instantly and effortlessly love you
I would
I would do it
Oh, you make it sound so simple
Oh, you make it seem uncomplicated
Drop my guard and act on impulse
Lower my defenses and act spontaneously
Love automatic, I would
I would love you without hesitation
Love automatic, I would
I would love you effortlessly
Love automatic, I would
I would love you without reservation
Love automatic, I would love
I would truly love you
If I numb my senses (yeah, oh)
If I desensitize myself
Could I try pretendin'? (Yeah, oh)
Can I attempt to pretend?
Couldn't be so reckless (yeah, oh)
I shouldn't act so carelessly
To hide in the corners of my mind
To conceal myself within the depths of my thoughts
When I caught sight sterlin' (yeah, oh)
When I caught a glimpse stealing
Couldn't say it for certain (yeah, oh)
Couldn't be sure about it
That it won't hurt you (yeah, oh)
That it won't cause you pain
I know how to kill the fire
I know how to extinguish the passion
Automatic, I would
Effortlessly, I would
Love automatic, I would
I would love you without effort
Love automatic, I would
I would love you inherently
Love automatic, I would
I would truly love you
Love
Love
Oh, oh
Oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
I would
I would
Automatic, I would
Effortlessly, I would
Love automatic, I would
I would love you without effort
Love automatic, I would
I would love you inherently
Love automatic, I would
I would truly love you
Love
Love
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Daniel Priddy, Gabe Simon, Jasmine Bogaerde, Mark Crew
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Izzat Yong
I hope this song get recognized worldwide... addicted to this song.
Sharon Thompson
Her voice is so beautiful. ❤ I listen to her songs first thing in the morning to brighten my day
Flik Feng
This track, anticipated since the tour, makes me automatically sway to its rhythm – it's a perfect fit for live performances. Every riff is so melodious. The culmination of vocalization and orchestrated melody in the final climax adds even more depth to this rhythmic song.🎉
Elaine Dunne
Lovely review❤
Bealish1871
Wow, what a fantastic song 🖤💛
Fabio Tito Montefinale
☺👌Hermosa canción👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🎙🎼🎼👍👍👍muchas gracias💘🌻😘👸🐦
Vanessa Sepúlveda C
I loved everything about this song. It is so powerful in every way. ⚡
Sheyla Cronwell (Irene)
"There's a voice that's calling me into the forest in the night...."
Maximiliano Gómez
I'm obsessed with this song, it's beautiful 💫💗
Sam O'Gara
This is probably my favourite album song, its amazing