# Meredith Brooks
**Meredith Brooks** (born 1958) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer best known for the Grammy-nominated 1997 hit single "Bitch" and the album *Blurring the Edges*, and later for her production and songwriting work for artists including [Jennifer Love Hewitt](https://www.edgepedia.org/jennifer-love-hewitt), Hilary Duff, and [Bebe Rexha](https://www.edgepedia.org/bebe-rexha).[1](https://www.grammy.com/artists/meredith-brooks/10465/) • [2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/) The Library of Congress authority record dates her birth to 1958; the full date of June 12, 1958, in Oregon City, Oregon, appears only in the user-editable Discogs database.[3](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no97060907.html) • [4](https://www.discogs.com/artist/143177)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Breakthrough | "Bitch" became a hit in spring 1997, sending her Capitol debut *Blurring the Edges* into the charts[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/meredith-brooks-mn0000406657) |
| Grammy nominations | At the 1998 Grammy Awards, "Bitch" was nominated for Best Rock Song (with co-writer Shelly Peiken) and Best Female Rock Vocal Performance[1](https://www.grammy.com/artists/meredith-brooks/10465/) |
| Sales | *Blurring the Edges* reached platinum per Encyclopedia.com; her official site calls it multi-platinum[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith) • [2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/) |
| Albums | *Blurring the Edges* (1997), *Deconstruction* (1999), *Bad Bad One* (2002), *Shine* (2004), *If I Could Be...* (2007), plus a 2023 expanded edition of the debut[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/meredith-brooks-mn0000406657) • [7](https://meredithbrooks.com/music/) |
| Production career | Runs Kissing Booth Music; co-wrote and produced Jennifer Love Hewitt's *Barenaked* (two ARIA gold singles) and worked on Hilary Duff's multi-platinum *Metamorphosis* (2003)[2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/) |
| Recent recognition | Won a 2020 BMI Award as a writer on Bebe Rexha's "I'm A Mess"[2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/) |
## Early life and background
Brooks was born Meredith Ann Brooks in Oregon City, Oregon, and raised in Corvallis.[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith) She became fascinated with music as a child and discovered blues, R&B, and classic rock as a teenager; Encyclopedia.com records that she learned guitar at age 11 by copying [Eric Clapton](https://www.edgepedia.org/eric-clapton)'s licks and graduated from high school at 15.[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/meredith-brooks-mn0000406657) • [6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith) She married Russell Jackson; the marriage ended in divorce.[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith)
## Early career and the Graces
After leading a series of bands in her native Oregon, Brooks got her break when she moved to Los Angeles in 1986; she joined the Graces in 1988, the post-Go-Go's group of [Charlotte Caffey](https://www.edgepedia.org/charlotte-caffey).[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith) • [8](https://ew.com/article/1997/06/13/interview-meredith-brooks/) She joined in 1988 after two years without a break, and the group released one album, *Perfect View*, in 1989. Sources disagree on when it ended: [Entertainment Weekly](https://www.edgepedia.org/entertainment-weekly)'s 1997 interview says the group broke up two years after the album, while Encyclopedia.com dates her split to 1992.[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith) • [8](https://ew.com/article/1997/06/13/interview-meredith-brooks/) After the Graces, Brooks joined a weekly women's group, took up charitable work, and aligned herself with spiritually inclined psychologists, though she flinched at the term "New Age".[8](https://ew.com/article/1997/06/13/interview-meredith-brooks/)
Capitol later released *See It Through My Eyes* in 1997, an album Brooks had originally recorded in 1984.[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith)
## Blurring the Edges and "Bitch"
Brooks signed with [Capitol Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/capitol-records) in 1996, and "Bitch" became a hit in the spring of 1997, carrying her debut album *Blurring the Edges* into the charts.[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith) • [5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/meredith-brooks-mn0000406657) Encyclopedia.com, quoting Entertainment Weekly, called the album a "well-constructed, bittersweet bluespop" record that reached platinum; her official site describes it as multi-platinum with a worldwide hit single, followed by the top-ten single "What Would Happen".[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith) • [2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/) The certification level is therefore reported differently by the two sources.
For roughly a year and a half afterward, Brooks toured constantly as a solo artist, as an opening act for the Rolling Stones, and as part of [Lilith Fair](https://www.edgepedia.org/lilith-fair), and performed as a featured artist on each of the Lilith Fair tours.[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith) • [2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/) Her television appearances included [The Tonight Show](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-tonight-show), Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, The View, Good Morning America, and VH1 Divas.[2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/) Encyclopedia.com situates the song's reception in its moment: by 1997 listeners had begun to tire of grunge's negativity and welcomed a surprisingly positive "Bi***" to the airwaves.[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith)
At the 1998 [Grammy Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/grammy-awards) the song earned two nominations: Best Rock Song, credited to writers Meredith Brooks and Shelly Peiken, and Best Female Rock Vocal Performance.[1](https://www.grammy.com/artists/meredith-brooks/10465/)
## Later albums and recording career
In 1999 Brooks launched her own website and released *Deconstruction*, whose first single was a remake of Melanie's "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)".[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith) Following that album she built her own studio and became an early expert in [Pro Tools](https://www.edgepedia.org/pro-tools), representing the software at NAMM, and co-produced her next two albums, *Bad Bad One* (2002, Gold Circle Records) and *Shine* (2004, Savoy).[2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/) • [5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/meredith-brooks-mn0000406657) Her last listed studio album is *If I Could Be...* (2007, on her own Kissing Booth label).[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/meredith-brooks-mn0000406657) • [7](https://meredithbrooks.com/music/)
## Production, songwriting, and other work
Brooks runs the production company Kissing Booth Music. She produced and co-wrote Jennifer Love Hewitt's album *Barenaked*, which produced two ARIA gold singles, and in 2003 co-wrote and produced for [Hilary Duff](https://www.edgepedia.org/hilary-duff)'s multi-platinum album *Metamorphosis*.[2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/) Becca was the first artist signed exclusively to Kissing Booth Music and topped international pop charts several times in Japan; Brooks has also written, produced, and coached artists including [Katy Perry](https://www.edgepedia.org/katy-perry), Haley Johnsen, and [Juliet Simms](https://www.edgepedia.org/juliet-simms).[2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/) In 2020 she won a BMI Award as a writer on Bebe Rexha's hit single "I'm A Mess".[2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/)
Earlier work includes the song "Sin City" on the soundtrack of the [Nicolas Cage](https://www.edgepedia.org/nicolas-cage) film *Snake Eyes*, and AMP (Anybody's Mentoring Program), which she formed to help kids develop their own music.[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith)
## Place among her 1990s peers
AllMusic frames Brooks as one of the female singer-songwriters who emerged in the wake of alternative rockers like [Liz Phair](https://www.edgepedia.org/liz-phair) and PJ Harvey, but with more in common with rootsier songwriters like Sheryl Crow or pop-rockers like Alanis Morissette; it characterizes "Bitch" as essentially a replication of Morissette's style.[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/meredith-brooks-mn0000406657) She shared the 1997 touring circuit of Lilith Fair and the Rolling Stones with other female-led acts of the period.[6](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith)
## What has changed since 2023
Her official discography lists a 2023 expanded edition of *Blurring the Edges*.[7](https://meredithbrooks.com/music/) Around the song's 25th anniversary, Lizzo released her own version of "Bitch" as the first single from an album of the same title, according to Brooks' official site.[2](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/)
## References
1. [Meredith Brooks Grammy Awards and Nominations, Recording Academy](https://www.grammy.com/artists/meredith-brooks/10465/)
2. [About – Meredith Brooks, official site](https://meredithbrooks.com/about/)
3. [Brooks, Meredith, 1958- , Library of Congress authority record](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/no97060907.html)
4. [Meredith Brooks, Discogs](https://www.discogs.com/artist/143177)
5. [Meredith Brooks, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/meredith-brooks-mn0000406657)
6. [Brooks, Meredith, Encyclopedia.com (Gale)](https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/brooks-meredith)
7. [Music – Meredith Brooks, official site](https://meredithbrooks.com/music/)
8. [Interview with Meredith Brooks, Entertainment Weekly, June 13, 1997](https://ew.com/article/1997/06/13/interview-meredith-brooks/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Pop and R&B singer-songwriters › Indie and alternative pop, 1990s and 2000s*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license