Towa Bird

Victoria Ilagan "Towa" Vergara-Bird is a British singer-songwriter and guitarist who was born on March 30, 1999. Born in Hong Kong to a Filipino and British family, she spent her early years living across Thailand, London, and Hong Kong, where she briefly studied at Discovery College. At twelve years old, she began learning the electric guitar, a pivotal experience that inspired her to pursue a long-term path in the music industry while also coinciding with her realization of her identity as a lesbian. By the age of fourteen, she established her own music group, The Glass Onions, playing gig performances at dive bars in Hong Kong. She later relocated to Surrey to attend the Hurtwood House private boarding school before enrolling at Goldsmiths, University of London, though she chose to leave higher education after completing two years.

Bird gained initial widespread visibility online during 2020 through the social media platform TikTok, where she published videos playing guitar riffs over popular tracks. Her early breakthrough occurred with a viral cover of Tame Impala's song "The Less I Know the Better," recorded from her bedroom in London. The viral success attracted industry attention from representatives Jacob Epstein and Zack Morgenroth at Lighthouse Management & Media. Consequently, she signed a recording contract with Interscope Records in 2021 and moved to Los Angeles, a city she had never previously visited. In 2022, she collaborated with pop artist Olivia Rodrigo, performing guitar instrumentation for the Disney+ documentary feature Olivia Rodrigo: Driving Home 2 U.

In April 2023, Bird officially debuted her original music under Interscope Records with the release of her single "Wild Heart." Throughout 2023, she expanded her audience by appearing as an opening performer during the North American and European dates of Reneé Rapp's Snow Hard Feelings Tour. Her professional association with Rapp developed into a personal relationship, and the couple subsequently made their first public appearance together at the Vanity Fair Oscars afterparty in March 2024. During 2024, Bird also took part in major live events, including a performance at the All Points East festival hosted in London.

On June 28, 2024, Bird released her full-length debut album, titled American Hero. Spanning 35 minutes across thirteen tracks, the record presents a subversion of classical archetypes delivered through a pop-punk musical style. She followed her debut two years later with her second studio album, Gentleman, which was released in May 2026.

Bird's musical background and songwriting are shaped by diverse generations of rock music. She was raised on classic rock introduced by her father, drawing artistic and aesthetic motivation from bands such as The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, and The Who. During her teenage years, her elder sister introduced her to pop-punk and emo artists, including My Chemical Romance, Avril Lavigne, and Fall Out Boy, while her own guitar practice was inspired by alternative rock acts like Blur, Kasabian, The Vaccines, and The Strokes. In her lyrics, Bird regularly addresses personal and social themes, focusing on topics such as queer relationships, anti-capitalism, and loneliness.