ITP V.013 EDITORS NOTE: While wishing all ITP V.013 READERS A HAPPY DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. BIRTHDAY this weekend (1/21/2013), we would like all to be accepting of all in the metal scene, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion and nationality.
ITP V.013's author, while subtly implied by others, was and still IS socially ostracized from both black AND white people for choosing extreme metal as my primary genre, as often people assume, I must know nothing because I'm a woman and I'm not straight.
Of course, music knows no color, gender nor sexuality, music is a universal language.
Presumptions based upon race that blacks only listen to rap, and whites listen to rock and metal are UNTRUE cultural and sexist stereotypes.
Cultural segregation stemmed musical segregation back in the 50's, we are beyond that.
Regarding WOMEN in metal, I know for a fact, they are plenty of female managers in extreme metal, publicists, and PR/PROMOTIONS. Also, the west coast RIOT GIRRL scene of the 90's inspired women to rock and mosh.
Remember, rock stemmed from the blues.
Cultural stereotypes only prove ignorance, and ITP V.013's author hopes that I've broken every cultural, racial, gender and sexual stereotype in the book, as someone's foot is in their mouth.
Yes, I've taken BLACK STUDIES and JOURNALISM classes in college as that indeed gave me insight and and an analytically sensibility.
ITP's author grew up in very culturally diverse environment, and college opened my eyes and ears to alot of underground music and sub cultures.
I would love to see more black women in extreme metal, please realize you (and WE) are NOT alone and encouraged.
LAINA DAWES experience in the metal scene is also ITP V.013's author's experience.
The full interview, is now available for streaming below.http://thelearnedfangirl.com/2013/01/20/i-read-a-book-laina-dawes-what-are-you-doing-here-a-black-womans-life-and-liberation-in-heavy-metal/
On discovering metal as a young misfit:
Dawes: "Being 11 or 12 years old, I really resonated with the sound of anger and my internal struggles or what I was going through. I found that listening to the music in my bedroom, being able to feel like you could scream and yell and really express your anger, that really helped me out when I was a kid. ... I went to a primarily white school, so we dealt with a lot of racism. My parents, even though they were always there and supportive as much as they could be, I didn't feel that they were taking my concerns seriously. Like, you know, getting on the school bus and things being thrown at you and racial insults. As soon as I got home, I knew that I couldn't tell my parents. I knew that they wouldn't understand, and that really caused a lot of depression for me as a kid because I really didn't feel like I had anyone to talk to about it."
On feeling resistance from all sides:
Dawes: "There was a boy who went to another high school. He was really into metal, and we would talk on the phone, and I remember that he said that he wanted to meet me at a shopping mall on the weekend. And he said, 'Well, what do you look like?' And I said, 'Well, I'm black and this and this...' and he hung up the phone. I never heard from him again. [I also remember] my black female friends in high school and their parents wondering why I was wearing a DEF LEPPARD T-shirt or whatever, and really kind of questioning me on my cultural legitimacy as a black person. All of those together made me really understand at a pretty young age that, as a black woman, I'm not supposed to be doing this, and there's something wrong with me because I enjoy this music."
On preconceptions about "black" and "white" musical styles:
Dawes: "In black communities, music is so integral in terms of a storytelling mechanism. Back in the blues era, African-American women were actually able to talk about their hardships and sorrows through music, and be very personal. [The same is true of] hip-hop because it's also obviously a black-centric music form. When I was in my 20s and hip-hop was coming out, a lot of black people felt that if you listened to hip-hop, that means that you're really black, that you're proud of yourself, that you know who you are. So when black people listen to 'white-centric' music — which is rock 'n' roll, country, heavy metal, punk, hardcore — it's seen that they are somehow not proud of who they are."
Featuring a foreword by Skin of SKUNK ANANSIE, "What Are You Doing Here?: A Black Woman's Life And Liberation In Heavy Metal" is available now in softcover wherever books are sold, and in eBook form via the Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, Apple iTunes Books, andKobo platforms.
For more information, visit www.bazillionpoints.com.
Laina Dawes is a journalist, cultural critic, and photographer. She has contributed to CBC Radio, Metal Edge, The Wire, Afrotoronto.com, and Blogher.com. An active public speaker, she has appeared at SXSWand the EMP pop music conference. She lives in Toronto, and her personal blog lives at WritingIsFighting.com.
Laina Dawes, author of the book "What Are You Doing Here?: A Black Woman's Life And Liberation In Heavy Metal" (Bazillion Points), was interviewed on Wednesday (January 2) on the "Soundcheck" show on the New York City radio station WNYC 93.9 FM. Topics discussed include the author's lifelong attraction to metal; resistance face by black women trying to enter the metal scene; and the rewards of trusting instinct and sticking to the music regardless of opposition from metalheads and the black community.
The 20-minute interview is now available for streaming using the audio player below.
Featuring a foreword by Skin
of SKUNK ANANSIE, "What Are You Doing Here?: A Black Woman's Life And Liberation In Heavy Metal" is available now in softcover wherever books are sold, and in eBook form via the Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, Apple iTunes Books, andKobo platforms.For more information, visit www.bazillionpoints.com.
Laina Dawes is a journalist, cultural critic, and photographer. She has contributed to CBC Radio, Metal Edge, The Wire, Afrotoronto.com, and Blogher.com. An active public speaker, she has appeared at SXSWand the EMP pop music conference. She lives in Toronto, and her personal blog lives at WritingIsFighting.com.
INTERVIEW WITH LAINA DAWES NPR MUSIC: http://www.npr.org/2013/01/04/167707991/the-life-and-liberation-of-a-black-female-metal-fan
http://www.lainad.typepad.com/
http://whatareyoudoingherebook.com/
VIDEOS BELOW: THE BLACK COMMUNITY AND METAL:
Thanks-Stay Metal, Stay Brutal-\m/ -l-
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