Heather Nova

{{Short description|Bermudian singer-songwriter (born 1967)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2023}} {{Infobox musical artist  | name = Heather Nova | image = 2019 Heather Nova - by 2eight - ZSC3103.jpg | image_size = | caption = Nova performing in 2019 | background = solo_singer | birth_name = Heather Allison Frith | alias = | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1967|7|6|df=y}} | birth_place = Bermuda | origin = | instrument = {{flat list | *Vocals *guitar}} | genre = {{flat list | *Alternative rock<ref name=Enc>{{cite web|work=Encyclopedia.com|title=Nova, Heather|publisher=Cengage|url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/nova-heather|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210726024959/https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/nova-heather|archive-date=26 July 2021|url-status=live}}</ref> *folk rock<ref name=Enc/> *alternative pop<ref name="Allmusic" />}} | occupation = Singer-songwriter | years_active = 1990–present | label = {{flat list | *Big Cat *WORK *V2}} | website = {{URL|www.heathernova.com}} }}

'''Heather Nova''' (born '''Heather Allison Frith'''; 6 July 1967)<ref name="Allmusic">{{cite web|url={{Allmusic|class=artist|id=p44942|pure_url=yes}}|title= Heather Nova Biography|website=AllMusic|last=Wilson|first=MacKenzie|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120712133319/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/heather-nova-mn0000668841|archive-date=12 July 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.royalgazette.com/other/lifestyle/article/20110210/90-minute-set-to-span-her-brilliant-career/|work=The Royal Gazette|title=90-minute set to span her brilliant career|date=30 January 2009|last=Acton|first=Nancy|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260527171118/https://www.royalgazette.com/other/lifestyle/article/20110210/90-minute-set-to-span-her-brilliant-career/|archive-date=27 May 2026}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|work=Apple Music|url=https://music.apple.com/by/artist/heather-nova/499182|title=Heather Nova|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260527173104/https://music.apple.com/by/artist/heather-nova/499182|archive-date=27 May 2026}}</ref> is a Bermudian singer-songwriter.{{sfn|Larkin|2000|p=288}} Born in Bermuda to a Canadian mother and Bermudian father, she spent most of her childhood aboard a sailboat, sailing throughout the Atlantic and Caribbean oceans. As a teenager, she relocated to the United States, where she attended the Rhode Island School of Design, earning a degree in film in 1989.

In 1990, after a stint residing in New York City, she relocated to London and began writing and performing music, releasing her first EP that year on the British independent label Big Cat Records. After releasing the studio albums ''Glow Stars'' (1993) and ''Oyster'' (1994), she found mainstream recognition with her third record, ''Siren'' (1998), which charted on the ''Billboard'' 200 after two of its tracks were featured on the popular American television series ''Felicity'' and ''Dawson's Creek''.<ref name=Enc/>

Nova followed this with the albums ''South'' (2001), ''Storm'' (2003), and ''Redbird'' (2005). In 2006, she released ''The Sorrowjoy'', a poetry album. Her subsequent albums include ''The Jasmine Flower'' (2008), ''300 Days at Sea'' (2011), ''The Way It Feels'' (2015), and ''Pearl'' (2019).

==Early life== Heather Nova was born Heather Allison Frith on Bermuda, a British overseas territory.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://chartattack.com/damn/2001/11/0610.cfm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011109093105/http://chartattack.com/damn/2001/11/0610.cfm|url-status=usurped|archive-date=9 November 2001|title=The Stars Shine For Heather Nova|date=9 November 2001|work=Chart Attack|author=''Chart Attack'' Staff}}</ref> Her mother is a native of Nova Scotia, Canada, and her father is a native of Bermuda. Nova spent most of her childhood with her family, including one sister, television reporter and fashion model Susannah, and one brother, reggae singer Mishka,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.royalgazette.com/article/20110817/ISLAND04/708179976|title=Mishka to perform in front of home crowd at Snorkel Park|first=René|last=Hill|date=17 August 2011|website=The Royal Gazette|archive-date=24 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161024170026/http://www.royalgazette.com/article/20110817/ISLAND04/708179976|url-status=dead}}</ref> on a {{convert|42|ft|m|adj=mid|-long}} sailboat (named ''Moon'') built by her father, where the Friths spent most of the 1970s and part of the 1980s, sailing throughout the Atlantic and Caribbean waters and coasts.<ref name=McCormick>{{cite news|work=The Daily Telegraph|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-telegraph/198422836/|date=4 June 1998|title=Sensual sound of an island siren|page=28|via=Newspapers.com|last=McCormick|first=Neil|author-link=Neil McCormick}}</ref> Nova started playing guitar and violin as a child.<ref name=McCormick/>

She relocated to the United States as a teenager<ref name=Enc/> and graduated from The Putney School in Vermont in 1983<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.putneyschool.org/notable-alumni/|work=The Putney School|title=Notable Alumni|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250219094529/https://www.putneyschool.org/notable-alumni/|archive-date=19 February 2025|url-status=live}}</ref> before enrolling at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), where she earned a degree in film in 1989.<ref name=Enc/> While attending RISD, she also composed and recorded the music for her student films.<ref name=Enc/>

==Career== After graduating from RISD, Nova relocated to New York City to pursue a music career.<ref name=Enc/> She recorded several demos which she sent to Columbia Records.<ref name=Enc/> In retrospect, she commented: "I had no idea how the music industry worked at all."<ref name=Enc/> She subsequently moved to London, where she already held British citizenship due to her Bermudian origins.<ref name=Enc/> In London, she worked in a Bermuda tourism office and began performing in local pubs in the evenings.<ref name=Enc/>

In 1990, she released her first recording, ''These Walls'', an EP, as Heather Frith.<ref name=Enc/> The new name debuted in 1993 with her second EP titled ''Spirit in You'' and her first full album, the critically acclaimed ''Glow Stars'', produced by Felix Tod, after being discovered by Big Cat label manager Steven Abbott.<ref name=Enc/>{{sfn|Larkin|2000|p=289}} The success of the album led her to record and release her first live album ''Blow'' the same year.{{sfn|Larkin|2000|p=289}}

In 1994, she released ''Oyster'', her breakout album that was produced by Youth and Felix Tod and began almost two years of touring. Another live album, ''Live from the Milky Way'', was released in 1995. ''Siren'', the follow-up to ''Oyster'' because of the single "London Rain", was released in 1998, after which she joined Sarah McLachlan and others on the North American Lilith Fair, a music festival with only female performers.{{citation needed|date=July 2015}} After the release of ''Siren'' and a world tour to promote the record, Nova took a break while various television show and film soundtracks licensed some of her songs and her record company (Sony Records/The WORK Group) released various singles from the album, which received only moderate play on America's MTV2, Europe's MTV and Canada's MuchMusic and on mainstream radio, although she was popular on college radio. Also during this time, she recorded a version of the often covered traditional song "Gloomy Sunday", for the German WWII feature film drama ''Ein Lied von Liebe und Tod'' (released under the international title, ''Gloomy Sunday''). In 2000, Nova released yet another live album titled ''Wonderlust''.{{sfn|Duerden|2003|page=734}}

Over the years, Nova has written and recorded over 120 songs. With the release of ''South'' (2001), she returned to the international spotlight with an appearance on the soundtrack of the John Cusack movie ''Serendipity''. She also appeared on the soundtracks to the Sean Penn film, ''I Am Sam''; ''The Crow: City of Angels''; and ''The Craft''. A collaboration with Swedish indiepop band Eskobar, for a song called "Someone New", led to its music video being played primarily on America's MTV. ''Storm'', Nova's fifth studio album, recorded with Mercury Rev as her backing band, was released in late 2003 on her own Saltwater label, went top 5 in Germany, followed by a tour during which Nova became pregnant. She quickly followed the birth of her son with her next record ''Redbird'', released in 2005, again Top 10 in Germany.

In December 2005, Nova released ''Together As One'', an EP supporting the Bermuda Sloop Foundation which operates the Bermuda sloop Spirit of Bermuda. In 2002, she self-published ''The Sorrowjoy'', a 72-page book of her poetry and drawings. An album of the same name was unofficially released in March 2006, which featured Nova reading the poems from her book set to ambient music. She also collaborated with the German trance artist ATB on tracks like "Love Will Find You", "Feel You Like a River" and the international hit "Renegade". In 2008, she released an album called ''The Jasmine Flower'', a solar powered acoustic album recorded in Bermuda, before touring as an acoustic tour.{{citation needed|date=July 2015}}

In late 2010 she embarked on another European tour promoting her ''The Jasmine Flower'' album. On this tour, she played four unreleased songs ("Save a Little Piece of Tomorrow", "Everything Changes", "Burning to Love", and "Turn the Compass Round") that are included on her album, ''300 Days at Sea'', produced by Felix Tod. This full-band album was released on 27 May 2011. In late 2014, she began working on studio album called ''The Way It Feels'' which was released in May 2015. Her tenth album, ''Pearl'', was released on 28 June 2019.

On 26 August 2022, Nova released her album ''Other Shores'', which consists of cover songs.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.heathernova.com/products/other-shores-album---1-.html |title=Heather Nova {{!}} Other Shores |website=Heather Nova Official Website |access-date=24 November 2021}}</ref>

On 21 February 2025, her latest album ''Breath and Air'' was released.

==Personal life== Nova was married to Felix Tod from 1996 to 2014. They have one son, Sebastian, born in 2004.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://bernews.com/bermuda-profiles/heather-nova/|work=Bernews|title=Heather Nova|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221203063826/https://bernews.com/bermuda-profiles/heather-nova/|archive-date=3 December 2022}}</ref>

==Discography== ===Studio albums=== {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" |+ List of studio albums, with selected chart positions ! rowspan="2" | Title ! rowspan="2" | Year ! colspan="10" | Peak chart positions |- ! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | UK <ref name="UK">{{cite web|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/31241/HEATHER-NOVA/|title=Heather Nova – UK Chart |publisher=Official Charts Company |access-date=15 March 2015}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | AUS <ref>{{cite Ryan|page=206}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | AUT <ref>{{cite web|url=https://austriancharts.at/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Heather+Nova|title=Discographie Heather Nova|website=Austriancharts.at|language=de|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250220203849/https://austriancharts.at/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Heather+Nova|archive-date=20 February 2025}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | BEL (FL) <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ultratop.be/nl/album/810/Heather-Nova-Oyster|title=Heather Nova – Oyster|publisher=Ultratop|language=nl|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250906075558/https://www.ultratop.be/nl/album/810/Heather-Nova-Oyster|archive-date=6 September 2025|url-status=live}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | FRA <ref>{{cite web|url=https://lescharts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Heather+Nova|title=Discographie Heather Nova|website=Lescharts.com|language=fr|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250220204026/https://lescharts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Heather+Nova|archive-date=20 February 2025}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | GER <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.offiziellecharts.de/suche?artistId=Heather+Nova|title=Discographie Heather Nova|website=Offiziellecharts.de|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250220204051/https://www.offiziellecharts.de/suche?artistId=Heather+Nova|archive-date=20 February 2025}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | NLD <ref>{{cite web|url=https://dutchcharts.nl/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Heather+Nova|title=Discografie Heather Nova|website=Dutchcharts.nl|language=nl|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250220203915/https://dutchcharts.nl/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Heather+Nova|archive-date=20 February 2025|url-status=live}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | NZ <ref>{{cite web|url=https://charts.nz/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Heather+Nova|title=Discography Heather Nova|website=Charts.nz|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250220203958/https://charts.nz/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Heather+Nova|archive-date=20 February 2025}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | SWI <ref>{{cite web|url=https://hitparade.ch/album/Heather-Nova/Oyster-2064|title=Discographie Heather Nova|website=Hitparade.ch|language=de|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250220204347/https://hitparade.ch/album/Heather-Nova/Oyster-2064|archive-date=20 February 2025}}</ref> ! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | US <ref>{{cite magazine | url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/heather-nova/ | title=Heather Nova | magazine=Billboard|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220601113239/https://www.billboard.com/artist/heather-nova/|archive-date=1 June 2022 }}</ref> |- ! scope="row"| ''Glow Stars'' | 1993 | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — |- ! scope="row"| ''Oyster'' | 1994 | 72 || 78 || — || 33 || — || 43 || 70 || 23 || 33 || 179 |- ! scope="row"| ''Siren'' | 1998 | 55 || 90 || 24 || 16 || 60 || 13 || 48 || 18 || 28 || 176 |- ! scope="row"| ''South'' | 2001 | — || — || 35 || 17 || 54 || 5 || 35 || — || 21 || — |- ! scope="row"| ''Storm'' | 2003 | — || — || 18 || 9 || 45 || 5 || 22 || — || 12 || — |- ! scope="row"| ''Redbird'' | 2005 | — || — || 40 || 16 || 74 || 10 || 23 || — || 15 || — |- ! scope="row"| ''The Jasmine Flower'' | 2008 | — || — || 61 || — || — || 52 || 43 || — || 26 || — |- ! scope="row"| ''300 Days at Sea'' | 2011 | — || — || 48 || 42 || — || 25 || 38 || — || 47 || — |- ! scope="row"| ''The Way It Feels'' | 2015 | — || — || — || 34 || — || 64 || 25 || — || — || — |- ! scope="row"| ''Pearl'' | 2019 | — || — || — || 32 || — || 21 || 24 || — || 57 || — |- ! scope="row"| ''Other Shores'' | 2022 | — || — || — || 109 || — || 20 || — || — || 34 || — |- ! scope="row"| ''Breath and Air'' | 2025 | — || — || — || 76 || — || 18 || — || — || 55 || — |}

===Poetry albums=== * ''The Sorrowjoy'' (2006)

===Live albums=== * ''Blow'' (1993) * ''Live from the Milky Way'' EP (1995) * ''Wonderlust'' (2000) * ''Live in Europe'' (2026)

===EPs=== * ''These Walls'' (1990)<ref name=Enc/> * ''Spirit in You'' (1993) * ''Live from the Milky Way'' (1995) * ''The First Recording'' (1997) – ''Heather Frith'' reissue * ''Together as One'' (2005) * ''Higher Ground'' (2011)

===Singles=== {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" |- ! rowspan="2" | Title ! rowspan="2" | Year ! colspan="9" | Peak chart positions ! rowspan="2" | Album |- ! width="35" | UK <ref name="UK"/> ! width="35" | AUS <ref name="ARIA history pages">{{cite web|url= https://imgur.com/a/xt3nrcp | title=Heather Nova ARIA chart history to 2024|publisher=ARIA|via=Imgur.com|access-date= 2 November 2024}} N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.</ref> ! width="35" | CAN <ref>Peak positions for singles in Canada: * For "London Rain": {{cite magazine|url=https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/obj/028020/f2/nlc008388.7926.pdf |title=Top Singles – Volume 67, No. 25, September 14, 1998|magazine=RPM|access-date=23 January 2021}} * For "Heart and Shoulder": {{cite magazine|url=https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/obj/028020/f2/nlc008388.7495.pdf |title=Top Singles – Volume 68, No. 15, February 1, 1999|magazine=RPM|access-date=23 January 2021}}</ref> ! width="35" | GER <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.officialcharts.de/suche.asp?search=Heather+nova&x=0&y=0&country=de&kategorie=single |archive-url=https://archive.today/20150315203832/http://www.officialcharts.de/suche.asp?search=Heather+nova&x=0&y=0&country=de&kategorie=single |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 March 2015 |title=Heather Nova – German Chart |website=Officialcharts.de |access-date=15 March 2015}}</ref> ! width="35" | NLD <ref>{{cite web|url=http://dutchcharts.nl/search.asp?cat=s&artist=Heather+Nova&artist_search=starts&title=&title_search=starts |title=Heather Nova – Dutch chart |website=Dutchcharts.nl |date=15 March 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250220204858/https://dutchcharts.nl/search.asp?cat=s&artist=Heather+Nova&artist_search=starts&title=&title_search=starts|archive-date=20 February 2025}}</ref> ! width="35" | NZ <ref>{{cite web|url=https://charts.nz/search.asp?cat=s&artist=Heather+Nova&artist_search=starts&title=&title_search=starts |title=Heather Nova – New Zealand Chart |website=Charts.nz |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250220203842/https://charts.nz/search.asp?cat=s&artist=Heather+Nova&artist_search=starts&title=&title_search=starts|archive-date=20 February 2025}}</ref> ! width="35" | SWE <ref>{{cite web|url=https://swedishcharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Heather+Nova&titel=Storm&cat=a |title=Heather Nova – Swedish chart |website=Swedishcharts.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161122114455/https://swedishcharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Heather+Nova&titel=Storm&cat=a|archive-date=22 November 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> ! width="35" | US Mod. Rock <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.billboard.com/artist/303382/heather-nova/chart?f=377 |title=Heather Nova – US Modern Rock Tracks |website=Billboard |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160403091048/http://www.billboard.com/artist/303382/heather-nova/chart?f=377|archive-date=3 April 2016}}</ref> ! width="35" | US Adult Pop <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.billboard.com/artist/303382/heather-nova/chart?f=343 |title=Heather Nova – Adult Top 40 Chart |website=Billboard |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150917062857/http://www.billboard.com/artist/303382/heather-nova/chart?f=343|archive-date=17 September 2015}}</ref> |- ! scope="row" | "Walk This World" | 1994 | 69 || 28 || — || 91 || — || 19 || —|| 13 || — | align="left" rowspan="3" | ''Oyster'' |- ! scope="row" | "Maybe an Angel" | 1995 | 91 || 125 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — |- ! scope="row" | "Truth and Bone" | 1996 | — || 122 || — || — || — || — || — || — || — |- ! scope="row" | "London Rain (Nothing Heals Me Like You Do)" | 1998 | 87 || 142 || 10 || — || — || — || — || — || 31 | align="left" rowspan="3" | ''Siren'' |- ! scope="row" | "Heart & Shoulder" | rowspan="3" | 1999 | 76 || 145 || 49 || — || — || — || — || — || — |- ! scope="row" | "I'm the Girl" | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — |- ! scope="row" | "Gloomy Sunday" | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | align="left" | ''Ein Lied von Liebe und Tod Soundtrack'' |- ! scope="row" | "I'm No Angel" | 2001 | 89 || — || — || 92 || 94 || — || — || — || — | align="left" rowspan="2" | ''South'' |- ! scope="row" | "Virus of the Mind" | rowspan="2" | 2002 | — || — || — || — || 84 || — || — || — || — |- ! scope="row" | "Someone New" (with Eskobar) | — || — || — || — || 88 || — || 14 || — || — | align="left" | ''There's Only Now'' (by Eskobar) |- ! scope="row" | "River of Life" | 2003 | — || — || — || 89 || — || — || — || — || — | align="left" | ''Storm'' |- ! scope="row" | "Renegade" (with ATB) | 2007 | — || — || — || 38 || — || — || — || — || — | align="left" | ''Trilogy'' (by ATB) |- | colspan="16" style="font-size:85%"| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. |}

===DVD=== * 2004: ''Live at the Union Chapel''

==Book== * ''The Sorrowjoy'', {{ISBN|0-9542115-0-2}}

==References== {{Reflist|30em}}

==Sources== *{{cite book|last1=Duerden|first1=Nick|editor1-last=Buckley|editor1-first=Peter|title=The Rough Guide to Rock|date=2003|publisher=Rough Guides|location=London|isbn=1-85828-457-0|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/roughguidetorock00roug/page/734}} *{{cite book|editor-last=Larkin|editor-first=Colin|title=The Virgin Encyclopedia of Nineties Music|publisher=Virgin Books|location=London|year=2000|isbn=0-7535-0427-8}}

==External links== * [http://www.heathernova.com/ Official Heather Nova website] * [http://www.heathernova-info.com/ Discography and song list] * [http://www.geocities.ws/gpvillain/nova2.html POTSI (archived): Heather Nova Biography] * [http://www.geocities.ws/gpvillain/nova.html POTSI (archived): Heather Nova Discography] * [{{Allmusic|class=artist|id=heather-nova-p44942|pure_url=yes}} Biography] at AllMusic

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nova, Heather}} Category:1967 births Category:Living people Category:Bermudian musicians Category:20th-century women guitarists Category:Women singer-songwriters Category:Women rock singers Category:Rhode Island School of Design alumni Category:V2 Records artists Category:Bermudian people of Canadian descent Category:The Putney School alumni Category:21st-century women singers Category:21st-century women guitarists