What Is Jewel Doing Now?
Jewel was a breakthrough star in the 1990s. With her folksy songs and Alaskan background, she became a sweetheart in the midst of the grunge era. Her hits were like poetry, penned to help her cope with her traumatic childhood. Unlike other celebrities looking to stay in the limelight, Jewel shied away from the attention, and after her success in the 1990s, she fell out of the spotlight. So what’s Jewel up to these days?
Jewel grew up on the last frontier
Jewel Kilcher was born in Utah, but the family moved back to their homestead in Alaska shortly after her birth. Her parents divorced when she was eight, and Jewel moved with her father to a house that had no indoor plumbing and was far from town. They ate off the land — whatever they could kill or can, and a young Jewel spent much of her time exploring the outdoors.
She performed in taverns and bars around town and in Anchorage, often with her father, until she received a scholarship to a Michigan art school. She moved there and learned how to play guitar and write songs. She relocated to California after graduating and played in coffee houses and even had to live in her car for a short time.
Jewel’s first album wasn’t her big break
Jewel was discovered during one of her coffee shop gigs and signed with Atlantic Records. She released her first album, Pieces of You, in 1995, but it failed to chart. Her big break came when she opened for Bob Dylan in 1997, and instantly her single “Who Will Save Your Soul” gained airplay. “Foolish Games” and “You Were Meant for Me” followed, and despite lukewarm reviews from critics, the album hit number 4 on the Billboard charts.
Her next albums were also successful, mostly due to her vulnerable lyrics and catchy melodies, but in 2003 she released a more upbeat, pop-sounding album that was far removed from her previous music. Fans and critics alike panned the album, saying it strayed too much from her folksy sound. While Jewel continued releasing albums, nothing was as successful as her initial debut.
Jewel returned to living in Alaska
Jewel was with her future husband Ty Murray during the height of her fame. The pair married in 2008 after 10 years together and had a son, Kase, in 2011. The marriage didn’t work out, and they divorced in 2014. She didn’t stray from music though, just went in a different direction. She released a country album Perfectly Clear in 2008 and according to Distractify, launched a nonprofit children’s foundation that helps youths with housing, food, and various other necessities.
One of her more recent songs, titled “No More Tears” is featured in a homelessness documentary Lost in America. Because of her own struggles before she hit it big with homelessness and poverty, Jewel is conscious to try and help others through her charity and work with mental health awareness. It’s all part of her brand, Jewel Inc., a brand that she hopes will help people find their own balance and own mindfulness.
Singing isn’t her only talent. She gave acting a go, and it seems to be working out well. She’s starred in a handful of Hallmark Channel’s TV mystery movies, playing a contractor and investigator. Her family also found their share of fame as her father and brothers are part of Discovery Channel’s TV show Alaska: The Lost Frontier.
Jewel moved back to Alaska a few years ago. She wanted a quiet place to raise her son but still finds time for writing, music, and the occasional acting gig.
