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.
Heart of Gold
Birdy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You think I'm weak cause you can tear me apart with the words that you speak
You think you're in control
But you don't understand how much you're wrong
You choose to lash out at me, I've done nothing wrong
All you crave is attention and just to be loved
You need to be loved
When my heart is made from gold
And forgiveness seems too bold
I still find it in my heart
To say "I love you"
When my heart is made from gold
And the hurt is just too bold
I still find it in my heart
To say "I love you"
Is there not enough to use your love for me
To get past the things who cause you envy and hate
And the fights that they bring
You say you're looked on as small
Can't understand why you don't have it all
But you don't know how I fight for you and believe in your aims
I just wanna do right by you, forget what has changed
'Cause nothing is changed
And I want to be free
When my heart is made from gold
And forgiveness seems too bold
I still find it in my heart
To say "I love you"
When my heart is made from gold
And the hurt is just too bold
I still find it in my heart
To say "I love you"
But you have to be so mean
You're such a drama queen
The way you prey on every weakness that you see in me
To make you strong, you are alone
So don't pretend like you can hardly breathe
Like it's down to me
'Cause it's so unfair that you can't succeed, but you're so wrong
We're still so young
And I want to be free
When my heart is made from gold
And forgiveness seems too bold
I still find it in my heart
To say "I love you"
When my heart is made from gold
And the hurt is just too bold
I still find it in my heart
To say "I love you"
In Birdy's song "Heart of Gold," the lyrics explore the theme of conflicting emotions in a relationship. The singer is struggling to maintain their strength in the face of their partner's hurtful words and behavior. The lines "You think I'm weak cause you can tear me apart with the words that you speak / You think you're in control" reveal the power dynamic within the relationship, with the partner attempting to assert dominance over the singer.
Despite this, the singer still maintains their love for their partner and seeks to reconcile their differences. The chorus's repetition of the phrase "When my heart is made from gold / And forgiveness seems too bold / I still find it in my heart / To say 'I love you'" captures the internal conflict of the singer- they want to forgive their partner, but don't know if they can.
Line by Line Meaning
I can be strong when I want to be,
I have the ability to be strong whenever I need to be
You think I'm weak cause you can tear me apart with the words that you speak
You believe that I am weak because the words you say can hurt me
You think you're in control
You believe that you have power over me
But you don't understand how much you're wrong
You do not realize how mistaken you are
You choose to lash out at me, I've done nothing wrong
You decide to attack me, even though I have not done anything to deserve it
All you crave is attention and just to be loved
You desire attention and love
You need to be loved
You require love
And I want to be free
I desire to be liberated
When my heart is made from gold
My heart is pure and valuable
And forgiveness seems too bold
Forgiving someone would require a lot of courage
I still find it in my heart
I am still able to find the capacity
To say "I love you"
To express my love for you
Is there not enough to use your love for me
Is your love for me not enough
To get past the things who cause you envy and hate
To overcome the things that make you jealous and hateful
And the fights that they bring
And the arguments that they create
You say you're looked on as small
You claim to be seen as insignificant
Can't understand why you don't have it all
Cannot comprehend why you do not possess everything
But you don't know how I fight for you and believe in your aims
However, you are unaware of how I defend and support you and your goals
I just wanna do right by you, forget what has changed
I simply want to treat you well and disregard what has altered our relationship
'Cause nothing is changed
Because nothing has actually changed
But you have to be so mean
But you have to be so cruel
You're such a drama queen
You are a person who is always involved in dramatic situations
The way you prey on every weakness that you see in me
The way you exploit every vulnerability that you detect in me
To make you strong, you are alone
In order to become strong, you must be by yourself
So don't pretend like you can hardly breathe
Therefore, do not act as if you are struggling to breathe
Like it's down to me
As if it is my fault
'Cause it's so unfair that you can't succeed, but you're so wrong
Because it is so unjust that you cannot prosper, but you are incorrect
We're still so young
We are still young
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JASMINE LUCILLA ELISABETH VAN DEN BOGAERDE, JASMINE LUCILLA ELISABETH VAN D BOGAERDE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind