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.
The A Team
Birdy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Breathing in snowflakes
Burnt lungs, sour taste
Light's gone, day's end
Struggling to pay rent
Long nights, strange men
She's in the class A team
Stuck in her daydream
Been this way since 18
But lately her face seems
Slowly sinking, wasting
Crumbling like pastries
And they scream
The worst things in life come free to us
'Cause we're just under the upper hand
And go mad for a couple of grams
And she don't want to go outside tonight
And in a pipe she flies to the Motherland
Or sells love to another man
It's too cold outside
For angels to fly
Angels to fly
Ripped gloves, raincoat
Tried to swim, stay afloat
Dry house, wet clothes
Loose change, bank notes
Weary-eyed, dry throat
Cool girl, no phone
And they say
She's in the class A team
Stuck in her daydream
Been this way since 18
But lately her face seems
Slowly sinking, wasting
Crumbling like pastries
And they scream
The worst things in life come free to us
'Cause we're just under the upper hand
And go mad for a couple of grams
And she don't want to go outside tonight
And in a pipe she flies to the Motherland
Or sells love to another man
It's too cold outside
For angels to fly
For angels to
Ooh, ooh,
Ooh, ooh
And they say
She's in the class A team
Stuck in her daydream
Been this way since 18
But lately her face seems
Slowly sinking, wasting
Crumbling like pastries
And they scream
The worst things in life come free to us
'Cause we're just under the upper hand
And go mad for a couple of grams
But she don't want to go outside tonight
And in a pipe we fly to the Motherland
Or sells love to another man
It's too cold outside
For angels to fly
For angels to fly
To fly,
For angels to die
The lyrics of "The A Team" by Birdy describe the tragic story of a young woman who is stuck in a life of addiction and prostitution. Her white lips and pale face indicate that she is sickly, while her burnt lungs and sour taste suggest that she is a drug user. She struggles to pay rent and is forced to spend long nights with strange men to make ends meet. The chorus refers to her as being in the "class A team" which is British slang for being a high-level drug user. She is living in a daydream and has been in this destructive lifestyle since she was 18 years old. The worst things in life come free to her, as she is just under the upper hand of addiction, and she goes mad for a couple of grams of drugs. The music video of the song shows Birdy singing in a dimly lit room with only a piano beside her, making for a solemn and heartbreaking performance.
The song was originally written and performed by Ed Sheeran and released in 2011. However, Birdy's version of the song in 2013 gained a lot of attention and popularity, with its stripped-down piano accompaniment and haunting vocals. The only significant difference between Birdy's and Ed Sheeran's versions is that Ed's lyrics detail the story of a male addict, while the Birdy version portrays a female addict.
Line by Line Meaning
White lips, pale face
She's sick and possibly anemic, with pale skin and lips.
Breathing in snowflakes
She's inhaling drugs, possibly cocaine or meth.
Burnt lungs, sour taste
Drug use has caused lung damage and a bad taste in her mouth.
Light's gone, day's end
Her life is dark and depressing.
Struggling to pay rent
She's financially unstable and can't afford basic necessities like shelter.
Long nights, strange men
She's working as a prostitute to survive.
And they say
She's in the class A team
Stuck in her daydream
Been this way since 18
But lately her face seems
Slowly sinking, wasting
Crumbling like pastries
And they scream
People view her as a drug addict and prostitute who's wasting away.
The worst things in life come free to us
'Cause we're just under the upper hand
And go mad for a couple of grams
And she don't want to go outside tonight
Drug addiction is cheap and readily available in her environment, and she's too depressed to leave her home.
And in a pipe she flies to the Motherland
Or sells love to another man
It's too cold outside
She's using drugs to escape reality and/or selling her body for money in harsh conditions.
Ripped gloves, raincoat
Tried to swim, stay afloat
Dry house, wet clothes
She's struggling to survive in harsh weather conditions, possibly homeless.
Loose change, bank notes
Weary-eyed, dry throat
Cool girl, no phone
She has little money and is tired and dehydrated, but maintains a calm demeanor despite her struggles.
For angels to fly
She sees herself and others in similar situations as angels that are doomed to suffer and die.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ED SHEERAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@malcolm004
In case you wanted the lyrics:
White lips, pale face
Breathing in snowflakes
Burnt lungs, sour taste
Light's gone, day's end
Struggling to pay rent
Long nights, strange men
And they say
She's in the Class A Team
Stuck in her daydream
Been this way since eighteen
But lately her face seems
Slowly sinking, wasting
Crumbling like pastries
And they scream
The worst things in life come free to us
'Cause we're just under the upper hand
And go mad for a couple grams
And she don't want to go outside tonight
And in a pipe she flies to the Motherland
Or sells love to another man
It's too cold outside
For angels to fly
Angels to fly
Ripped gloves, raincoat
Tried to swim and stay afloat
Dry house, wet clothes
Loose change, bank notes
Weary-eyed, dry throat
Call girl, no phone
And they say
She's in the Class A Team
Stuck in her daydream
Been this way since eighteen
But lately her face seems
Slowly sinking, wasting
Crumbling like pastries
And they scream
The worst things in life come free to us
'Cause we're just under the upper hand
And go mad for a couple grams
And she don't want to go outside tonight
And in a pipe she flies to the Motherland
Or sells love to another man
It's too cold outside
For angels to fly
An angel will die
Covered in white
Closed eye
And hoping for a better life
This time, we'll fade out tonight
Straight down the line
And they say
She's in the Class A Team
Stuck in her daydream
Been this way since eighteen
But lately her face seems
Slowly sinking, wasting
Crumbling like pastries
They scream
The worst things in life come free to us
And we're all under the upper hand
Go mad for a couple grams
And we don't want to go outside tonight
And in a pipe we fly to the Motherland
Or sell love to another man
It's too cold outside
For angels to fly
Angels to fly
To fly, fly
For angels to fly, to fly, to fly
For angels to die
@oakington
Her mum is a concert pianist, her dad an author. She combines fine piano work with fine words. She Is her parents daughter. Bless her!
@kellylouise5481
aw! that's awesome :-)
@aemiglio152
I agree with you, but this is an Ed Sheeran's lyrics... By the way her songs are awsome
@ScotsLyon
I did not know that thanks for the info Oak
@dannyd0g
Her great uncle was the famous actor Dirk Bogarde. Talent does often seem to run in families.
@oakington
Wow! I did not know that. You are right about that. Bogarde was excellent.
@cyndrianaa
I respect Birdy so much. She's by far the most talented singer I've heard and she sings with her heart and not for fame. I love that she's always remained discreet and very humble over the years. We need more artists like her.
EDIT 2023: I saw Birdy live, her voice is pure gold. Still got chills.
@kirstygallacher1718
Absolutely... So right... Humble... X
@whisperingpoet4352
She’s discreet and low key. She remains true to herself.
@elenaemilycociorva9560
It is rare finding someone who can truly sing one of Ed’s songs. Ed’s voice and touch are inimitable and most of the covers I hear are terrible. But Birdy... Birdy truly took it to another level. She reinterpreted the song, singing in a pure and, at the same moment, passionate way that no one but her could have afforded. I love this cover as much as the original.