Katy Steele Reimagines Little Birdy Hits on New Album

Katy Steele listened to her old recordings and barely recognized the voice staring back at her. "I sound like a child—I was a child, really," the Australian singer says of her Little Birdy tracks from the early 2000s. "I sound like a woman now."

That realization sparked something unexpected. After reuniting with Little Birdy last year for their first tour in 15 years, Steele walked into a studio with a simple idea: what would those songs sound like through her voice today?

The answer arrives April 24 with "Undressed," an EP that reimagines Little Birdy favorites like "Beautiful To Me" and "Relapse" alongside solo tracks and bold covers. She tackles The Smiths, Lou Reed, Michael Jackson, and Patti Smith with just piano, vocals, and raw emotion.

"Some of them are just piano and vocal and a few harmonies," Steele explains. "Some people might find that kind of boring, and that's cool, but it's what it is."

The contrast between past and present reveals how much has changed. Steele was only 18 when she picked up a guitar, and Little Birdy took off almost immediately. Their 2003 single "Relapse" cracked the ARIA charts and landed in triple j's Hottest 100, forcing a teenager to grow up onstage.

"I kind of had to learn on the stage," she recalls. "Things are just… things are intense, man" when you're 17 and suddenly famous.

Why This Inspires

There's something powerful about an artist brave enough to revisit their younger self without trying to recreate it. Steele isn't chasing nostalgia or attempting to top her biggest hits. She's simply asking: what do these songs mean to me now?

That honesty extends beyond Little Birdy. The EP includes one never-released track she wrote years ago, waiting for the right moment. "It was really fun and spontaneous for the most part," she says of the recording process. "This is the way it should be."

Fans hoping for more Little Birdy won't be disappointed. While the band members now live in three different states, making collaboration difficult, Steele confirms new music is brewing. "We just want it to be really good," she says. "We don't want to put any old shit out."

For now, she's taking the stripped-back approach on tour across Australia, starting in Hobart on April 23. The shows promise the same intimacy as the recordings: just Steele, her piano, and two decades of perspective.

Sometimes the most radical thing an artist can do is slow down and strip away everything that doesn't matter. Steele found liberation in that simplicity, and her fans are about to hear what she discovered.