So just who is this Jengurl who has been popping up on Lilith Fair, mp3.com, and in clubs, coffeehouses and other venues across America? Merely a charming and hardworking, self-described "indie chick with a guitar" making her own way in the music world with the pluck that comes from following one's muse and dreams. And thanks to her enchanting musical appeal, effective guerrilla marketing, and ingrained gusto for life and her art, Jengurl (nee Jennifer Schossow) has sparked a considerable buzz through the underground. Tagged as "definitely an artist to watch out for" by Music Connection, she scored more than 11,000 downloads in 1999 at mp3.com to hit #2 on the site's alternative Top 40, and sold thousands of her debut EP "aka Jengurl" and first album "Stick a Fork In It" on the budding Penguinville Records. Such burgeoning momentum was sparked by her 1998 cross-country trek with Lilith Fair, where, after starting to informally serenade her customers and co-workers at the Starbucks booth, she rose to regular appearances on the Emerging Artists stage at Tower Records, a slot on the tour's Village Stage, and ultimately the main stage, singing with The Cowboy Junkies and on the final encore. Jengurl has also caught the ear of radio with the help of a track on CMJ's Certain Damage compilation, and hit the Top 20 on Boston's influential college station WECB with her Jengurl EP. Not bad for a gal doing it all on her own (and determined to stay as independent as possible). Jengurl developed her artistry in two of America's most musical cities: Seattle, where she sang in local rock acts before going solo, and Austin, where she now lives. A native of the Pacific Northwest, she grew up in an artistic, bohemian family between Washington State and Alaska. "I always knew I wanted to sing," she recalls, and studied music and voice in her teens. During her early twenties, she fronted a number of Seattle bands that were the local pop-rock alternative during the glory years of grunge. Her budding talent was noted by the Seattle publication The Stranger, who cited Jengurl's "considerable stage presence and a voice capable of mesmerizing an audience" in one of her earliest reviews. Inspired by the emerging breed of new female artists in the mid-1990s, Jengurl eventually decided to strike out on her own with her guitar and the songs she was writing. After moving to Austin to soak up its legendary songwriting vibes, Jengurl learned that when opportunity knocks, it's always good to play it a song. A longtime barista (coffee server) with Starbucks from the days when both were local Seattle phenomena, she landed a job brewing espresso and frothing milk for the masses on Lilth Fair in 1998. Figuring, what the hell, it's a traveling music festival, she brought along her guitar, and started playing for her pals at the Starbucks booth as they packed up at the end of each show. She was such a hit that the folks from the nearby Tower Records booth asked her to start playing there as well. When the EPs she brought along as musical calling cards started selling out after her performances, she had to keep ordering hundreds more to be pressed up and sent, time and again, as her impact exceeded her wildest expectations. Then Mary Lou Lord dropped out of her Village Stage show in Boise, ID, and the powers that be tapped Jengurl to play. She became the living embodiment of the Lilith Fair's spirit as she traveled and sang for 25 dates of the tour, becoming a full-fledged member of its musical community. On her return to Austin, Jengurl cut her first full-length CD, "Stick a Fork In It", co-produced by Bill Carter, noted blues-rock songwriter for Stevie Ray Vaughn and The Fabulous Thunderbirds, and guitarist for the band P (which also includes Johnny Depp and Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers). She also set out to conquer the road, booking herself on tours across the country onto a variety of stages - basically, wherever she can find an audience and earn enough to get herself to the next city. Jengurl's independence, determination and career savvy have earned her the inevitable comparisons to such other feisty gals with guitars as Ani DiFranco and Mary Lou Lord, while her lithe vocal style has been likened to Tori Amos and Kate Bush. Reviewers have also heard strains of everyone from The Counting Crows to the Lori Carson-fronted The Golden Palominos in her music. But in actuality, Jengurl counts a variety of influences to her music, from the Beatles music she heard growing up to such singers as Aretha Franklin and Ofra Haza, and figures that most everything that catches her ear somehow affects her own style. Listen.com may have said it best by noting her "impassioned, personal songcraft" and the "disarming sincerity" of her singing. Clearly, Jengurl is an artist whose love for music translates into music a growing legion of fans find lovable. The year 2000 finds Jengurl preparing her second CD for release. She has also launched her own website, www.jengurl.com, where she continues to sell CDs and win new fans. Clearly, she's prepared to make the most of the 21st Century on her own terms. And if what she's achieved already is any indication, Jengurl is a musical name to be reckoned with.
by Rob Patterson