Olivia Jean

Olivia Jean Markel was born on February 23, 1990, in St. Clair Shores, Michigan. At age seven, Jean received her first guitar and began teaching herself to play. She formed her first band, Broken Glass, in second grade. At 13, she attended her first concert, seeing The White Stripes at Detroit’s Masonic Temple, and later created a fan webpage dedicated to the band. As a 14-year-old high school freshman, Jean formed the band Yazuka Drag Queens with friends, winning a school talent show and opening for local bands. By high school, she was a self-taught multi-instrumentalist and songwriter, recording her own surf music with basic equipment. Jean initially viewed music as a hobby and began playing in small Detroit clubs, distributing homemade demo CDs. In 2006, she received third place for featured writing in the Michigan Interscholastic Press Association Spring Conference. In 2008, she participated in the Detroit Festival of the Arts, replicating Andy Warhol’s “Red Jackie” with chalk. In 2009, she enrolled in graphic design school while continuing to create surf-inspired instrumental demos under the name Idee Fixe.

In 2009, at age 19, Jean was discovered by Jack White after she placed her demos on his band’s tour bus. White invited her to his Nashville studio, Third Man Records, to record her songs. She would alternate between Nashville for Third Man projects and Detroit, eventually moving to Nashville permanently in 2011. Jean appeared in The Dead Weather’s 2009 music video for “I Cut Like a Buffalo.” She contributed to other Third Man projects, playing bass on two tracks for Karen Elson’s 2010 debut album, “The Ghost Who Walks,” and appearing in its music video. She also played in Elson’s live band, including a performance on “The Late Show with David Letterman” in September 2010. For Wanda Jackson’s 2010 Jack White-produced album, “The Party Ain’t Over,” Jean played several instruments and appeared in the music video for “Thunder on the Mountain.” She also toured as a guitarist in Jackson’s live band, performing on “The Late Show with David Letterman” and at the Grand Ole Opry in January 2011.

Jean contributed backing vocals and various instruments to several of Jack White’s solo albums, including “Blunderbuss” (2012), “Lazaretto” (2014), “Entering Heaven Alive” (2022), “Fear of the Dawn” (2022), and “No Name.” She appeared in White’s 2012 “I’m Shakin'” music video and performed live with him on “Conan” in December 2012, providing guitar and backing vocals. In 2022, she also appeared in White’s “If I Die Tomorrow” music video. Jean became part of the Third Man Records family in 2009, where she was introduced to other musicians, leading to the formation of the all-female gothic rock band, The Black Belles. Jack White produced their first single, “What Can I Do?” in 2010, which later became the theme song for “Elvira’s Movie Macabre.” The band collaborated with Stephen Colbert on the song “Charlene II (I’m Over You)” and performed it on “The Colbert Report.” The Black Belles released their self-titled debut album in 2011, produced by Jack White, and toured internationally until their disbandment in 2012. Following the band’s dissolution, Jean embarked on a solo career, releasing “Bathtub Love Killings” in 2014, “Night Owl” in 2019, and “Raving Ghost” in 2023.