Jewel Is "Stronger Woman" for Difficult Upbringing

Posted by amyclark on 08/20/2008
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1/14/2008 Stephen L. Betts Jewel’s highly-anticipated debut country single, “Stronger Woman,” is a self-penned tune taking a real-life look at a woman standing up for herself and getting out of a non-productive relationship. “I think the sexes frustrate each other and I wrote this song as an expression of that frustration,” says the singer-songwriter. “I think it’s good for women to know they are capable of being independent, and for men to know that too. Nobody should feel trapped in any situation. Sometimes just knowing that you’re free gives you the strength and courage you need. And I think that’s an attractive quality to a man as well.” In addition to her new music, the Alaska native recently became an Ambassador for Virgin Unite, Sir Richard Branson’s non-profit foundation. “Over the last few months, I've been working on a campaign called ‘The RE*Generation’ to raise awareness about the fact that there are more than one million homeless young people in the United States,” she says of the project. “It's a joint initiative supported by Virgin Unite, Virgin Mobile USA, and some fantastic non-profit organizations such as StandUp for Kids, YouthNoise, Children's Health Fund and others. Working with The RE*Generation gives me the chance to let people know that so many children are living on the streets right in our own backyard. Many of them have left home because of violence, abuse or neglect. Every day, they face extreme hardships-poverty, social exclusion and often-continued abuse.” Jewel says that because she experienced homelessness first-hand as a teenager, she felt compelled to get involved. In June, she testified at a Congressional hearing about her own experiences as a homeless teenager, and in November, Congress declared “National Homeless Youth Awareness Month” to call attention to the issue across the country. For more information, visit www.HomelessYouthAmongUs.org.