Wild Belle

Wild Belle formed as an exploratory sibling act whose vibrant indie pop draws from reggae, Afrobeat, soul, and additional styles. Their first full-length effort, Isles, came out via Columbia in 2013, after which the pair appeared on multiple television shows, traveled extensively, and played prominent events including Coachella and Lollapalooza. The darker follow-up Dreamland arrived in 2016, prompting the siblings to operate independently and issue their bold third album, Everybody One of a Kind, on their own imprint in 2019.

Elliot and Natalie Bergman, both raised in the Chicago area, spent their early years making music, and Elliot later pursued jazz saxophone studies at the University of Michigan. The two began collaborating in 2006 once Elliot asked Natalie to join his Afrobeat fusion outfit NOMO as a backup singer and percussionist. She contributed vocals to the band’s 2011 single “Upside Down,” its first vocal recording since the initial releases. Not long afterward the siblings turned to Natalie’s own material, giving rise to Wild Belle. In 2012 they issued the single “Keep You,” which attracted label attention following a notable performance at Austin’s South by Southwest Festival, leading to the Columbia release of their debut album Isles the next year.

Wild Belle partnered with Major Lazer in 2015, co-writing and appearing on the track “Be Together.” They tracked their second album in Chicago studios plus additional sessions in Los Angeles, where Natalie had relocated, channeling personal difficulties into a richer, more expansive sound. Dreamland emerged in April 2016. After parting ways with Columbia, the duo put out the standalone singles “Untamed Heart” and “Hurricane” on their Love Tone label in 2017. Their third album, Everybody One of a Kind, followed in 2019, with vinyl production handled by Tuff Gong.