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.
Older
Birdy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Old enough to be yours, mhmm
And I wish that I was wiser
Wise enough to be strong-minded
To keep up with the words you say
That make me feel so young
But I don't know where this is going
And I can see by your smile
That you're glowing inside and out
Let's not pretend like it's not what it is
When I'm just starting to realise
That I love you, ooh
And I wish that we were strangers
Strange enough to go unnoticed from this crowd
And I wish that we were closer
Close enough for me to hold you
When your lonely nights become too long to bear
But I don't know where this is going
I've just been hoping
And I can see by your smile
That you're glowing inside and out
Let's not pretend like it's not what it is
When I'm just starting to realise
That I love you, ooh
You hold your head up high
Though it's hard to, ooh
I can't keep back
I know I just want you, ooh
But I don't know where this is going
I've just been hoping
And I can see by your smile
That you're glowing inside and out
Let's not pretend like it's not what it is
When I'm just starting to realise
That I love you, ooh
I love you…
The song "Older" by Birdy talks about a young person's infatuation with someone they feel is too mature and experienced for them. The person wishes they were older and wiser to have a better chance at a relationship with the other person. They express their desire to be close enough to hold the person when they are lonely and wish they could go unnoticed in a crowd to avoid scrutiny. Despite their uncertainty, the person is drawn to this individual and starting to realize that they have fallen in love.
The lyrics convey a sense of longing and angst that anyone who has felt a strong attraction to someone they felt was out of their league could relate to. The idea of wanting to be older and wiser in order to be with someone taps into a universal desire to be seen as more mature and experienced than one is perceived to be. The chorus "But I don't know where this is going, I've just been hoping" speaks to the uncertainty and anxiety that often comes with strong emotions.
The song's stripped-down production and Birdy's powerful, emotive voice create an intimate and intense atmosphere that perfectly captures the mood of the lyrics. Overall, "Older" is a poignant and relatable exploration of the conflicts and contradictions that come with youthful infatuation.
Line by Line Meaning
I wish that I was older
I wish I had more life experience to better understand what's happening between us
Old enough to be yours, mhmm
Old enough to be in the same life stage as you, so that we could be together without any issues
And I wish that I was wiser
I wish I had more wisdom to better navigate the complexities of our relationship
Wise enough to be strong-minded
Wise enough to be emotionally resilient and not get swayed by your actions
To keep up with the words you say
To handle and understand the things you say and the emotions they evoke
That make me feel so young
Your words and actions make me feel inexperienced and immature
But I don't know where this is going
I'm uncertain about where this relationship is headed
I've just been hoping
I've been holding onto hope that things will turn out for the best
And I can see by your smile
I can tell from your smile that you're happy and content
That you're glowing inside and out
You're radiating with happiness and joy
Let's not pretend like it's not what it is
Let's not deny the truth about our feelings and the situation
When I'm just starting to realize
I'm only just beginning to understand and accept my own feelings for you
That I love you, ooh
I have come to the realization that I am in love with you
And I wish that we were strangers
I wish we didn't have any history or prior relationship to complicate things
Strange enough to go unnoticed from this crowd
So that we could be together without anyone noticing or commenting on it
And I wish that we were closer
I wish we were physically closer and could spend more time together
Close enough for me to hold you
Close enough physically to express my love through touch and embrace
When your lonely nights become too long to bear
To be there for you when you're feeling sad or alone
You hold your head up high
You are confident and self-assured
Though it's hard to, ooh
Despite the difficulties and challenges we face in our relationship
I can't keep back
I can't hold back my feelings anymore
I know I just want you, ooh
I'm sure that I want to be with you
I love you...
I love you, and I want to be with you
Contributed by John N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@jameskam2057
You can just feel, that she was born to be doing what she is doing. All her own stuff and the covers she does is just amazing.
@MartaToroM
And I wish that we were closer, close enough for me to hold you, when your lonely nights become too long to bear...
@oliveclark8826
This song couldn't be more related to my current situation. I wish I knew Birdy's situation for writing this x
@goldragon2676
Same
@xprex
I am 30 and he is 53, never ever felt deeply inlove like this before .. we can't even admit it becuase we will get hate more than anything else .. our feelings remained unspoken
Birdy you hit it with this song, no one can write such deep song without experiencing the real situation 💔
@leeknight9957
Live... why would you let imaginary opinions constrain your actuality? Sorry... just... you're the only ones losing in the equation. People will always find a way to disagree with something because they're self important reductive tw*ts... don't let their discontent define you.
@sadzi2
Birdy is such a great artist...
@carakizu4942
I'm 20 and he's 45... I'll love him forever and ever, never will I forget the joy he showed me on one of my darkest nights of the year.... Christmas eve is now my favorite time of the year to look forward to, hard to believe I ever dreaded it 😍😍😍
@livgrant4671
Forgive me for asking... Are you two still together?
@parultiwari9847
This ethereal song is truly a reflection of my feelings towards my Mathematics teacher. I'm 15 and he is 52 😊 He considers me to be one of his favourites because I possess sheer interest & knowledge in his subject. He knows that I am his fervent admirer and he likes me as well . He always shakes hand with me and once, I kissed his hand as an indication of respect and love 💗 he smiled to it.
I would like to state that this song is truly Birdy's magnum opus. It is one of the most intriguing songs related to intense feelings with an inimitable musical symphony. This song haunts me ( repeatedly comes in my memory) and I'm always here to listen .