BOOK REVIEW - KATHERINE YESKE TAYLOR, "SHE'S A BADASS"

I'm music magazine, she's a badass women in rock shaping feminism, katherine yeske taylor, backbeat books, rowan & littlefield, suzi quatro, ann wilson, heart, exene cervenka, gina schock, the go go's, lydia lunch, suzanne vega, cherie currie, the runaways, joan osborne, donita sparks, l7, amanda palmer, orianthi

Veteran music journalist Katherine Yeske Taylor’s, She’s a Badass: Women in Rock Shaping Feminism, will be released on January 16, 2024, via Backbeat Books (a division of Rowman & Littlefield.) The book is a fascinating collection featuring twenty influential female artists and how their influence in rock music shaped feminism. Taylor describes in the introduction, “Spanning the 1970’s through today, these women’s stories prove that promoting feminism-either through activism or by living example – is, undeniably, badass.”

Taylor’s in-depth interviews with legendary artists and newcomers are a compelling read. Each artist takes you on their journey through their lives and their musical career and delves into the challenges they faced as women in the music industry and the strength and courage it took to overcome them and pave the way for other female artists. The inspiring conversations include trailblazers Suzi Quatro, Ann Wilson (Heart), Exene Cervenka (X), Gina Schock (The Go-Go’s), Lydia Lunch, Suzanne Vega, Cherie Currie (The Runaways), Joan Osborne, Donita Sparks (L7), Amy Ray (Indigo Girls), Tanya Donelly (Throwing Muses/The Breeders/Belly), Paula Cole, Tobi Vail (Bikini Kill), Laura Veirs, Catherine Popper, Amanda Palmer, Bonnie Bloomgarden (Death Valley Girls), Orianthi, Fefe Dobson, and Sade Sanchez (L.A. Witch).

She’s a Badass is a must-read for all music lovers. Taylor’s conversations with the amazingly strong and talented women featured in this collection are riveting and powerful. Susan Roger, Prince’s longtime in-house engineer, says in the book’s afterword, “Stories like the ones Katherine Yeske Taylor has collected here are a cultural map of women rock musicians over the past fifty years. They describe high yet sharp peaks, sterile deserts, verdant fields, and lots of real or anticipated dangers. As the women pioneers settled this landscape, they transformed it into one that is more welcoming and productive for today’s artists. How they accomplished this, and why, is a genuine love story between women and rock music.”

I’m Music Magazine Associate Editor/Writer Meesha Walden