Her breakout band, Rilo Kiley, gifted multiple generations of messy 20-somethings with brutally honest accounts of toxic relationships on “Glendora” and “Portions for Foxes.” Indie supergroup The Postal Service’s concept album, Give Up, chronicles the decay of a relationship, with Lewis cast as the female lead opposite Ben Gibbard's heartsick protagonist. Her solo work covers struggles ranging from growing up as a child actor to being a woman in the male-dominated indie rock scene.
These days, however, she has found unconditional love and joy in the form of a little black dog named Bobby Rhubarb.
“She is the love of my life, my best friend and companion,” Lewis gushes at the mention of her puppy. “I can't imagine a time before her.”
Lewis, who will perform at South Side Music Hall on March 2, released her latest album, Joy’All, last year. As the title gives away, the record represents a more optimistic and content phase in her life. Bobby Rhubarb is the living embodiment of this new perspective.
“Being on the road for so many years, you don't really…” She trails off. "There are a lot of sacrifices. There are a lot of amazing things, but [...] you can't really keep plants alive and you can't have a dog. So I'm grateful for that period to now kind of understand what true love is.”
Despite being conceived during the darkness of the pandemic, new songs such as “Puppy and a Truck” express appreciation and gratitude for the joyful parts of her life with lyrics such as, "If you ever feel like giving up / Shut up and get a puppy and a truck."
Jenny Lewis and one of her Joy'All muses, Bobby Rhubarb.
Bobbi Rich
“The mindset was totally fresh and different,” she says. “I went in the studio in 2021, so it was still a little bit dicey being around people, so I was extra grateful to be there and extra open.”
A change of scenery contributed to this openness. Lewis, a California native, relocated to Nashville to work on Joy’All with leviathan country producer Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, Lady Gaga, Brandi Carlile) and found the music-centered nature of the city inspiring.
“When you grow up in LA, it's like, Hollywood is the business. But in Nashville, it's music,” she says. “You feel it, you know? Driving to work every day. You're like, ‘Wow, I'm gonna work on Music Row. This is pretty cool.’”
Country, folk and Americana influences have been present in Lewis’ music going back to her days with Rilo Kiley. From a visual perspective, Joy’All appears to be her most country album yet, with promo photos depicting her in flamboyant rodeo attire.
“The songs reflected my environment,” she says, referring to Nashville. “I think I've always, you know, written in different genres to kind of express the narrative.”
Lewis’ sonic influences, however, are more diverse than the strong presence of cowboy hats might imply.
“I think it actually has kind of some R&B influences,” she says. “When I went to the studio, my only reference for Dave Cobb was that I wanted to make something kind of like Tracy Chapman or Sade.”
Lewis’ optimistic and carefree attitude on Joy’All extends to sex and relationships, which she approaches with a wry, almost unbothered sense of humor. She shrugs off the pitfalls of modern dating with lyrics like, “I’m not a psycho / I’m just tryna get laid.”
In a world fraught with discourse on situationships and ghosting, Lewis has adopted a kind of “it is what it is” mindset toward relationships.
“I was actually working on a song with that term in it,” she says of situationships. “And then I scrapped it because it was a little bit on the nose. But I'm in a situationship right now.”
Despite the word’s negative connotation, Lewis isn’t fazed by a romantic relationship being undefined.
“I think it's like how you accept your current reality, you know?” she says. “I think there's pressure to be, you know, in a relationship or with someone and sometimes you just have to meet someone where they're at [...] So maybe those are experiences that you can learn from.”
She pauses, considering her words, and then chuckles — “That was bullshit.”
While she’s on tour, the connection that matters most to Lewis is the one she has with her fans. In addition to her current Joy’All Ball Tour, she’s been on the Postal Service reunion tour and recently opened for Harry Styles on the North American Leg of his Love On Tour.
While she received some backlash from Styles’ fans on Twitter for the crime of being someone they hadn’t heard of, Lewis says none of that negativity was present in the real world.
“It was a pretty loving, joyful experience,” she says. “You can't really expect everyone to love you or understand. You just kind of have to do your authentic thing. And maybe, you know, a couple of people will get turned on to it.”
She says she recognizes and remembers fans who have seen her multiple times, from the day-one Rilo Kiley crowd to Styles fans who were converted by her opening set.
“I love this new crew because they are so much more energetic and vocal than the rest of the crowd,” she says of younger fans from Styles’ tour. “You can like hear the Harry peeps in the crowd because they're loud.”
The loving and supportive vibe onstage is present behind the scenes as well. Lewis has made it a priority to have as many women on her touring crew as possible, and her entire band is female. She says this decision has brought about more productivity and less drama.
“Not to say that I don't love playing music with men, because I absolutely do,” she clarifies. “But there's very open communication, you know? We're all listening to one another. There's been no drama, absolutely no drama. And we're extremely efficient, yet we know how to also have fun and take breaks.”
“I've had the most fun with this band out on the road,” she continues. “And I feel the most comfortable with them.”
But the most beloved member of her tour by far is, of course, Bobby Rhubarb, the puppy who has traded a truck for a tour bus.
“She’s a road dog,” Lewis says. “It’s heartbreaking leaving her behind.”
Jenny Lewis will bring her Joy’all Ball Tour to South Side Music Hall on March 2. Tickets start at $37 and can be purchased on AXS.
