Hong Kong, London, Thailand, Los Angeles—Towa Bird (@towabird) was raised all over, and music was what grounded her. Across the globe, she has had the luxury of playing for different audiences. She has been coined the female Jimi Hendrix, which is deemed appropriate. When asked which artist she looked up to the most growing up, she replied, “Hendrix,” while laughing at the irony. Bird is extraordinarily talented—writes her music, sings her songs and can handle the electric guitar like it’s her sixth sense. She has toured for other bands but is now on her first tour playing her own music, opening for Reneè Rapp. “It’s insane seeing my own name up there every night in lights,” she said.

Bird playing her hit song “Wild Heart.” PHOTO BY KATERINA COTRONEO

Bird recently played at iconic Austin venue Stubb’s Bar-B-Q, and when asked what she thought of the historic venue, she said, “It had an electric vibe. Some venues have a great distance between the artist and fans, and here, we were able to get right up in there with them. It was awesome.” Bird was jumping up and down, her guitar in hand, making the venue shake in the best way. Bird said she “loves her Austin fans. There’s something about them. They’re so cool. Each state we play in has a different kind of energy in the audience, and Texas all around was very powerful and fun.” Still, Bird certainly could tell Austin was the live music capital for a reason. Not every day do we get a woman who unapologetically plays rock, but here she is. It’s her and her firebird against the world.