Jewel Kilcher, better known to the music-loving world as singer/songwriter “Jewel,” returned to her Alaskan homestead for the first time in nearly seven years to take part in three episodes of Discovery’s Alaska: The Last Frontier, a reality program that documents the extended Kilcher family, including Jewel’s father, Atz, and brother, Atz Lee.
Jewel brought her 5-year-old son, Kase, on the trip, marking his first journey to the homestead to meet many members of his family.
“Oh my gosh, I was overjoyed to get to go back, but having a son, I didn’t want to take him up there until he was old enough to remember it,” says Jewel to NCD. “I was really happy to take him up there and show him where I’m from. I’ve always been homesick for Alaska. I think how I was raised made me the kind of person I am and allowed me to stay grounded. I was raised knowing it was not money or material things that make us happy, it’s what kind of humans we are. Striving every day to be a good human was important to me. I was happy to try to share the land and nature and that type of lifestyle with my son.”
Highlights of Jewel’s visit include Atz building a wilderness fort for Kase, as well as a reunion potluck dinner the family cooked.
“My dad made my son an entire town in nature and made him this beautiful fort and threw him a little birthday party and that was beyond incredible,” says Jewel. “Just to see Kase be a part of that and getting to play on the homestead with his cousins was really incredible. My family threw a big reunion potluck for me. It was amazing and delicious. Homemade food tastes infinitely better than anything else, especially dad’s homemade bread.”
The first of Jewel’s three episodes, “The Prodigal Daughter Returns,” airs on Sunday, Nov. 27, followed by “The Monster Catch” on Dec. 4 and “When Cows Attack” on Dec. 11. Tune in to Discovery, Sundays, at 8 p.m. CT to catch all of the action.
