Josephine Foster

{{short description|American singer-songwriter}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2020}}

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Josephine Foster

| image = Josephine-foster-optimal.jpg

| background = solo_singer

| birth_place = Colorado, United States

| instrument = Guitar, piano, harp, organ

| genre = Folk, art song, psychedelic rock, experimental, New Weird America,{{cite web |url=https://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/which-way-to-the-new-weird-america-that-mellifluous-mojo/Content?oid=920387|title=Which Way to the New Weird America?; That Mellifluous Mojo |last=Mehr |first=Bob |date=November 3, 2005 |website=Chicago Reader |access-date=December 8, 2019}} Americana

| occupation = Singer, songwriter, musician, music producer

| years_active = 2000–present

| label = Fire Records, Windbell, Bo' Weavil Recordings, Locust Music, | associated_acts = Mendrugo, The Victor Herrero Band, The Supposed, Born Heller, The Children´s Hour

| website = {{URL|www.josephinefoster.info}}

}}

Josephine Foster is an American singer, songwriter, and musician from Colorado. She is known for her anachronistic voice and work that weaves older styles with the modern, escaping simple classification.{{cite news|title=Endearingly Odd Musician Casts a Spell |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/apr/29/josephine-foster-review-endearingly-odd-musician-casts-a-spell |newspaper=The Guardian|date=April 29, 2019 |accessdate=November 21, 2019 |last1=Lewis |first1=John }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/which-way-to-the-new-weird-america-that-mellifluous-mojo/Content?oid=920387|title=Which Way to the New Weird America?; That Mellifluous Mojo|first=Bob|last=Mehr|website=Chicago Reader|date=November 3, 2005 }}{{Cite web|url=http://drownedinsound.com/releases/4192/reviews/12890-josephine-foster-hazel-eyes-i-will-lead-you|title=Album Review: Josephine Foster - Hazel Eyes, I Will Lead You|website=DrownedInSound.com|access-date=September 30, 2020|archive-date=June 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210617202112/https://drownedinsound.com/releases/4192/reviews/12890-josephine-foster-hazel-eyes-i-will-lead-you|url-status=dead}}

As a teenager, Foster worked as a church singer and aspired to become an opera singer. She moved to Chicago in 1998 to further her opera studies, and began home-recording her songs, resulting in the albums There Are Eyes Above, influenced by Tin Pan Alley, and an album of children's songs, Little Life. She then released collaborative albums with local folk bands The Children's Hour (SOS JFK), Born Heller (S/T), as well as All the Leaves Are Gone, a psychedelic rock album with backing band The Supposed.{{Cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/3324-all-the-leaves-are-gone-with-the-supposed/|title=Josephine Foster / The Supposed: All the Leaves Are Gone|website=Pitchfork.com}}

A number of solo records followed, including the all acoustic Hazel Eyes, I Will Lead You, an unorthodox collection of 19th century German Lieder titled A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing,{{Cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/3325-a-wolf-in-sheeps-clothing/|title=Josephine Foster: A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing|website=Pitchfork.com}} and This Coming Gladness, a psychedelic folk-rock album.{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/this-coming-gladness-mw0000791521|title=This Coming Gladness - Josephine Foster | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic|website=AllMusic}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.tinymixtapes.com/music-review/josephine-foster-coming-gladness|title=Music Review: Josephine Foster - This Coming Gladness|website=Tinymixtapes.com}}

Foster released most of her recordings the following decade with Fire Records, including Graphic as a Star, her settings of 27 Emily Dickinson poems.{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/graphic-as-a-star-mw0001937549|title=Graphic as a Star - Josephine Foster | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic|website=AllMusic}}

Thereafter she began to record frequently with engineer Andrija Tokic, who co-produced with Foster her solo albums Blood Rushing,{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/release/blood-rushing-mr0003739903|title=Blood Rushing - Josephine Foster | Release Info|website=AllMusic}} I'm A Dreamer,{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/im-a-dreamer-mw0002582033|title=I'm a Dreamer - Josephine Foster | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic|website=AllMusic}} and Faithful Fairy Harmony;{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/faithful-fairy-harmony-mw0003216178|title=Faithful Fairy Harmony - Josephine Foster | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic|website=AllMusic}} also More Amor, a psych-folk album by her new band Mendrugo formed with Victor Herrero. The latter was Foster's first foray into writing lyrics in Spanish.{{Cite web|url=https://www.tinymixtapes.com/music-review/mendrugo-more-amor|title=Music Review: Mendrugo - More Amor|website=Tinymixtapes.com}}

The title song from I'm A Dreamer was featured in Season 2, episode 7 of the British television show The End of the F***ing World.{{Cite web|url=https://www.newsweek.com/end-f-ing-world-season-2-soundtrack-songs-potatoes-graham-coxon-netflix-1470135|title=All the songs from the "End of the F***ing World" Season 2 soundtrack|author=Samuel Spencer|date=November 6, 2019|website=Newsweek.com}}

Foster also lent her voice to the soundtrack for the 2020 film, The World to Come, and sung (as well as co-wrote) the titular song over the end credits.{{Cite web|url=https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/the-world-to-come-review/5152890.article|title='The World to Come': Review|author=Jonathan Romney|date=6 September 2020|website=screendaily.com}}