Gretchen Phillips


Gretchen Phillips is an American singer-songwriter known for her humorous and topical songs. Phillips has been openly gay throughout her life and her lesbianism has inspired much of her material.

Background

Phillips grew up in Houston. Her parents were musicians, and she played music from childhood. After graduating from the High School for Performing and Visual Arts, she decided move to Austin in 1981 to become a professional performer and was in a band with Sara Hickman.

Meat Joy, Girls in the Nose, and Two Nice Girls

Phillips was a member in three influential area bands in the mid-eighties: the punk band Meat Joy, the rock band Girls in the Nose, and the country/disco/rock/folk/pop band Two Nice Girls. Two Nice Girls attracted national attention with Phillips' song "I Spent My Last $10 " which satirized heterosexual relationships.

Bands and solo projects since Two Nice Girls

Since the break-up of Two Nice Girls, Phillips has been part of The Gretchen Phillips Experience, Dusty Trails, Phillips & Driver, Lord Douglas Phillips, and The Gretchen Phillips Ministries, as well as performing as a solo artist.

Awards

Two Nice Girls won a GLAAD Media Award in 1991. Phillips was inducted into the Austin Chronicle Music Poll's Hall of Fame in 2001.

Personal life

Phillips has been openly gay throughout her life and her lesbianism has inspired much of her material. Phillips has generally resided in Austin, but has also lived in San Francisco and New York City.

Other

An archive collected by Phillips, including items such as reviews and news articles, video recordings of her shows, and fan mail, is part of Cornell University Library's Human Sexuality Collection.

Discography