JODI PHILLIS

Jodi Christine Phillis (born in Melbourne on 11 April 1965) is a singer-songwriter-guitarist. She spent her childhood in California, USA, and moved back to Sydney, to begin school. She quit school at 15, then spent eight years working with surfwear company Mambo Graphics until she took up the role as co-frontwoman of The Clouds. Phillis was best known for her vocal ability in many of her songs, such as 'Hieronymus', 'Souleater' and 'Ghost of Love Returned'.

After the Clouds' split in 1997 Phillis formed The Dearhunters project, and from then on, she took a much mellower musical direction. Her debut solo album 'Lounge O' Sound', embraced many exotic textures, while its follow-up, the more conventional 'In Dreams I Live' (2001) received much critical acclaim. The track ''Waiting, Wanting, Holding'' was featured in the ABC's series Love Is A Four-Letter Word. 'In Dreams I Live', went on to receive two ARIA Award nominations. Her third solo album, 'For Lovers, Artists and Dreamers', was released in 2004.

2005 saw Phillis reunite with former Clouds band-mate Trish Young, under the aptly named moniker The Girls From The Clouds. Their EP 'Lalalala' was released in early 2006. After 18 months, however, Phillis and Young once again went their separate ways. In 2011, The Clouds reformed to play a tour with Jesus Jones and the Wonderstuff, playing sold out shows at the Enmore Theatre. In 2016 The Clouds released a new EP, 'Zaffre' and toured Australia. They have since toured with Cyndi Lauper and Blondie as part of the Day on the Green festival series. A new single was released in 2017 called ''Beautiful Nothingness'' (written by Phillis) which is a "mini meditation wrapped up in a song". The Clouds still collaborate and perform periodically.

In 2013, Jodi attended the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS), to study composition and graduated with a Certificate in Screen Music. Jodi's screen credits include the feature film Convict, and numerous TV commercials and television shows. In 2017 Jodi Phillis spearheaded the composer's project, Seven Stories, in collaboration with Ensemble Offspring and six other prominent female composers, Amanda Brown, Caitlin Yeo, Sally Whitwell, Bree van Reyk, Kyls Burtland and Jane Sheldon with text by Hilary Bell. Seven Stories premiered during Sydney's Vivid Festival. In 2018, Phillis released her 'Becoming' album. Produced by Tim Oxley and penned by Jodi, it was an album that covered topics such as grief, loss, love and menopause. The album was rated at #5 in Your Music Radar's "Top 20 Best Australian Albums of 2018", with Brian Parker opining, "An album that serves as a chronicle of one person’s experience of change, yet ultimately becomes therapeutic for her listener – giving hope that life and love is worth it, and with change comes positivity. A beautiful album that marks Phillis as one of Australia’s vital singer-songwriters." Jodi's latest album 'We Need To Be Free' was released in 2022.

References

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jodi_Phillis