When Girl Named Tom released today’s first video, they were a lot less known than they are today. Since releasing the upcoming video they have gone on to win The Voice S21 (September 2021). Girl Named Tom is a folk trio comprised of the Liechty siblings Caleb (born 1995), Joshua (b. 1998) and Bekah Grace (b. 2000). They are from Pettisville, Ohio.
Apparently the boys nicknamed their baby sister Thomas, as they had been hoping for a brother. Hence, the name of the band. I can’t help thinking that the name Girl Named Tom was also influenced by Boy Named Sue, the Shel Silverstein song popularised by Johnny Cash. Here is pre-The-Voice Girl Named Tom with a harmonious take on Blowin’ in the Wind.
As Arlene Mcintosh observes, Girl Named Tom’s Blowin’ in the Wind is reminiscent of Peter, Paul, and Mary’s version of the early Bob Dylan classic. Karen Laney writes: “Goosebumps & tears! Absolutely beautiful arrangement”. The song was posted on 9 May 2020, several months after the siblings elected to try out as a band instead of them all going to medical school. Their first single (Barrier Island) was released in November 2019 followed by an EP (Another World) a month later.
Before the pandemic forced a change of plans, Girl Named Tom spent their first year as a band driving an old minivan around the US (67 shows in 27 cities). Despite the pandemic, the band kept active on YouTube in 2020, including broadcasting eight live episodes. The highlight of 2021 was undoubtedly the band’s run on The Voice where they were the first trio to win the competition. Here is Girl Named Tom doing Fleetwood Mac’s The Chain with a full band on the finale of AGT 2021. Enjoy.
The other songs performed by Girl Named Tom on The Voice include Coldplay’s Viva La Vida and Joni Mitchell’s The River. Their coach was Kelly Clarkson.
In 2022, Girl Named Tom capitalised on their success on the voice by undertaking a 95 show national tour, where they played from LA through the Midwest to NYC. Meanwhile Caleb, Joshua and Bekah added to the repertoire of covers by writing new songs. To end the year, the group released a Christmas album and opened for Pentatonix on the 22 arena Holidays Around The World tour.
From July 2023 Girl Named Tom will again tour the US. This time the stage set will be designed to look like the siblings’ living room.
On their webpage, the band describes itself as “Small town siblings with a wide world-view, we seek to create harmony in a society divided. We believe that as we share our music with our three unique voices, we can inspire the world with a common goal: To fly and help each other fly.”
Girl Named Tom have 58.4K subscribers to their YouTube channel. They have posted 90 videos. Their most popular video is their cover of Bob Dylan’s Blowin’ in The Wind, as featured in this article. If you would like to see more from Girl Named Tom, you can subscribe to their YouTube channel. You can also visit their official website for more information.