Alexxs Musical Influences Ask Away!

As a kid growing up in the 90s, there weren’t a lot of female-fronted rock bands pushing the boundaries of music. Sure, we had Joan Jett, Ann and Nancy Wilson from Heart, Pat Benatar, and some other independent performers, but they weren’t getting a lot of media coverage. As such, when I started getting into rock music, I wasn’t really exposed to many female musicians.

Fortunately, that is no longer the case. These days, female rockers are everywhere. There’s Sharon Van Etten, St. Vincent, Courtney Love, Kim Gordon, Neko Case, and more. And there are a ton of indie bands with female vocalists like Warpaint, Savages, Hinds, Sleater-Kinney, and many more.

The evolution of female musicians into rock music is an inspiring one, not just for female artists, but for music fans as a whole. It has allowed for more diverse styles of music and opened up opportunities for women to be heard and respected in their respective fields. It has also resulted in more female-fronted bands being taken seriously by record labels, which is great news for aspiring female musicians.

Ultimately, I think it’s really important for young girls and boys to have access to female musicians who can be a source of inspiration. If you’re a young musician looking to start a band, you don’t have to settle for the more traditional male-fronted bands that have dominated the scene for decades. With the current slate of female rockers, you can take risks, ignore genre biases, and create something completely unique.

It’s an exciting time for female rockers and I’m grateful to have grown up surrounded by so much musical talent.

So Andrew, who did I draw inspiration from as a kid? Honestly, it was my dad. He is a great guitarist, bassist, and vocalist, and he taught me everything I know about playing and performing. He also showed me that gender should never be a barrier to pursuing your dreams.