Pitchfork

Photos by Los Angeles 13th City Council District

For blazing a trail across indie America's heart, Rilo Kiley frontlady/solo singer Jenny Lewis has been named a "Pioneer Woman" by the Los Angeles City Council.

Okay, so maybe it was actually for "contributions to popular music [that] have left their mark on her neighborhood, her genre, and her time" and helping "place the Silver Lake and Echo Park musical scenes on the leading edge of 21st-century song," as board president Eric Garcetti put it. The leading edge of 21st-century song, eh?

Lewis received the Pioneer Woman award-- given out annually in conjunction with National Women's History Month, and meant to honor "outstanding community service and accomplishments...that continue to expand opportunities for generations to come"-- from Garcetti during a ceremony last Friday, March 30.

Ever humble, Lewis had this to say: "It is an honor to be recognized in the company of all the women gathered here whose accomplishments far outstrip my own. These women are actually affecting the community in a tangible way while I'm just up there singing about it." Oh, stop!

Since releasing and touring behind her disc with the Watson Twins, Rabbit Fur Coat, last year, Lewis has kept a fairly low profile. Her community-servicing voice graces Dntel's forthcoming Sub Pop LP Dumb Luck, while Rilo Kiley have been hard at work on the follow-up to 2004's More Adventurous.