Ground-breaking musician Jill Sobule dies in house fire

Jill Sobule, a ground-breaking American songwriter whose deed I Kissed a Girl is wide considered the archetypal opus with openly-gay themes to ace the Billboard Top 20, has died successful a location occurrence successful the US metropolis of Minneapolis, her publicist has said.

Sobule, whose satirical anthem Supermodel featured successful the 1995 coming-of-age movie Clueless, was 66.

She had been owed to execute connected Friday successful her location metropolis of Denver to showcase songs from her autobiographical signifier musical. A escaped gathering volition present instrumentality spot successful her honour.

Tributes person been pouring successful connected societal media, including from English instrumentalist Lloyd Cole, who said: "I'm truly excessively numb to station overmuch of anything. We loved her. She loved us."

Born successful 1959, Sobule's vocation spanned 3 decades, her euphony dealing with topics including the decease penalty, anorexia and LGBTQ+ rights.

But her astir celebrated enactment came connected her eponymous 1995 album, which included Supermodel and I Kissed a Girl.

The second drew renewed attraction successful 2008 erstwhile Katy Perry released a antithetic azygous of her ain with the aforesaid title.

Sobule aboriginal became a pioneer of utilizing crowdfunding to merchandise albums, and wrote euphony for theatre and tv shows, including the taxable for the Nickelodeon amusement Unfabulous.

John Porter, Sobule's manager, said she was a "force of quality and quality rights advocator whose euphony is woven into our culture. I was having truthful overmuch amusive moving with her. I mislaid a lawsuit & a person today. I anticipation her music, memory, & bequest proceed to unrecorded connected and animate others."

Eric Alper, a Canadian euphony correspondent, posted connected X that she "paved the mode with heart, humour, and honesty. The archetypal openly cheery creator to interruption the Billboard Top 20, her songs similar "I Kissed a Girl" and "Supermodel" changed the soundtrack - and the conversation".

"Jill Sobule was truthful special. Heartbreaking news," American histrion Carrie Coon posted.

Police successful the suburb of Woodbury are investigating the origin of the occurrence astatine the location wherever Sobule was found, the Star Tribune reported.