Jill Sobule, ‘I Kissed a Girl’ Singer, Tragically Dies in House Fire

Jill Sobule, the singer-songwriter best known for her 1995 hit “I Kissed a Girl,” tragically died in a house fire in Minnesota on Thursday morning. She was 66 years old. The fire broke out in Woodbury, approximately 16 miles east of Minneapolis, and firefighters discovered her body after responding to a call around 5:30 a.m.

Her manager, John Porter, released a statement honoring Sobule as “a force of nature” and a dedicated advocate for human rights. He highlighted how her music is intricately woven into the fabric of culture. Sobule’s song “I Kissed a Girl” made history by reaching No.

20 on Billboard’s modern rock chart, being one of the first openly queer-themed records to achieve such recognition. Another of her notable songs, “Supermodel,” gained popularity as part of the “Clueless” soundtrack. In her later career, Sobule created “F— 7th Grade,” a coming-of-age musical that premiered off-Broadway in 2022, which went on to receive a Drama Desk nomination for “outstanding musical” the following year and earned a New York Times Critic’s Pick.

She was scheduled to perform in Denver at Swallow Hill on Friday, where an informal gathering is expected to take place in her memory. Additionally, Sobule had a history with the song title “I Kissed a Girl,” particularly in relation to Katy Perry’s 2008 release of the same name, which was unrelated to Sobule’s original. Despite some tension with Perry’s fans, Sobule expressed no ill feelings toward Perry herself, stating that she was somewhat relieved to no longer be solely recognized as the “Kissed a Girl” artist.

Sobule is survived by her brother and sister-in-law, James and Mary Ellen Sobule, along with her nephews, Ian Matthew and Robert, and Robert’s wife, Irina.