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She was loved.
Jill Sobule’s death has brought several people together, including those who were close to her in her younger years.
The Post spoke to Sobule’s former college roommate, who shared specifics about the singer’s time at the University of Colorado and expressed regret over not keeping in closer contact amid the musician’s passing.
“We were only roommates our freshman year but were friends throughout college,” Wendy Greengard Mikulka told The Post and also provided a photo with Sobule from inside their dorm in Williams Village at the university on Monday, May 5.
“She spent a semester in Spain and came back and didn’t continue college so she could pursue her music career,” she explained of Sobule. “She wrote a song called ‘Wendell Lee.’ He is the guy sitting next to her in the picture.”
Greengard Mikulka recalled Sobule being “the life of the party and easy to be around,” adding the late singer was “so fun in college.”
“She always wanted to be a musician. I used to go to her gigs at coffee shops in Boulder and listen to her play. Some of her other friends and I used to pretend to be backup singers and dancers. She always loved writing fun songs,” she shared of Sobule’s early years before fame.
The “I Kissed a Girl” singer always had a sense of humor, her former roommate recalled.
“I remember one Halloween she dressed up like a pregnant Girl Scout. That was Jill for you,” her college friend reminisced, adding, “She left college and moved back to Denver if I remember right, and didn’t graduate with me, and we kind of lost touch.”
However, their paths would later cross in San Francisco, with Greengard Mikulka telling The Post that she went to one of Sobule’s shows in the city about ten years ago.
“We stayed after the show was over and spent a bunch of time catching up,” she said.
Greengard Mikulka expressed regret for not keeping closer contact with Sobule.
“I tried to contact her after her mom died, but was unsuccessful. I wish I would have tried harder,” she shared.
Sobule unexpectedly died in Minnesota on Thursday, May 1, when a fire broke out at the house where she was staying. She was 66 years old.
While her friends made it out of their home safely, they did not notice the singer was unable to free herself from the flames.
Law enforcement has revealed that an investigation is underway to determine if Sobule passed away before the deadly inferno broke out.
“WPD can confirm the victim of the fire yesterday morning was Jill Sobule,” WPD patrol commander Tom Ehrenberg told The Post on Friday. He also said investigators are looking into how the fire started.
“The Ramsey County Medical Examiner did not finalize the cause of death. The fire itself, including the cause, is still under active investigation, which is standing operating procedure.”
Her friends have no idea how the fire started, according to TMZ.
Sobule’s body is being tested for drugs, alcohol and carbon monoxide poisoning to determine when and how she passed away, a Ramsey County representative in Minnesota told the outlet.
The singer was behind the iconic 1995 hit “I Kissed a Girl,” which is widely considered the first openly gay-themed tune to break into the Billboard Top 20.
Sobule also found recognition with her song “Supermodel,” which was featured in Alicia Silverstone’s breakout movie “Clueless” (1995), the autobiographical Drama Desk-nominated musical “F–k 7th Grade” about being queer in middle school, and creating the theme song for Nickelodeon’s “Unfabulous.”
Sobule was getting ready to celebrate the 30-year anniversary of “F—k 7th Grade,” with the original cast recording being released in June alongside the reissue of her self-titled album, featuring “I Kissed a Girl” and “Supermodel.”
She was scheduled to perform “Jill Sobule presents: Songs From F–k 7th Grade & More” on Friday, May 2, in Denver, Colorado. However, following the news of her shocking death, the event was canceled.
Several of Sobule’s colleagues have spoken out after her passing.
Her booking agent, Ken Hertz, called her “family.”
“She showed up for every birth, every birthday, and every holiday. She performed at our daughter’s wedding, and I was her ‘tech’ when she performed by Zoom from our living room (while living with us) during the pandemic,” Hertz told The Post.
Sobule is survived by her brother, James, sister-in-law, Mary, and two nephews. A formal memorial celebrating her life will reportedly happen later this summer.
English (US)