Ladyfest is a community-based, not-for-profit global music and arts festival for feminist and women artists. Individual Ladyfests differ, but usually feature a combination of bands, musical groups, performance artists, authors, spoken word and visual artists, films, lectures, art exhibitions and workshops; it is organized by volunteers. [1] [2] [3] [4]
The first ever Ladyfest was conducted in Olympia, Washington in August 2000 with over 2000 people attending. Prime motivators in the event were Sarah Dougher, Sleater-Kinney, and Teresa Carmody. Also performing were The Gossip, Bangs, The Need, The Rondelles, Bratmobile, Slumber Party, and Neko Case, Ladyfests in the world have staged De Introns, Helluvah, Planete concrete, EDH, Sans gène, Synth Cherries, Heart of Wolves, Nasty Candy & Coco Lipstick . [5] [6] [7] [8]
Since the first Ladyfest, the event has branched all over the world in places such as Albuquerque, Amsterdam, Atlanta, Belfast, Belgium, Bellingham, Berlin, Birmingham, Bordeaux, Brighton, Bristol, Brooklyn, Budapest, Cambridge, Columbus, Cork, Chicago, Cardiff, Dijon, Dublin, Glasgow, Grenoble, Kassel, Lansing, MI, Leeds, London, Los Angeles, Madrid, Manchester, Melbourne, Miami, Orlando, Ottawa, Oxford, Paris, Philadelphia, Riverside, California, Scranton, San Francisco, San Diego, Sevilla, Sheffield, Tallinn, Texas, Toronto, Toulouse, Traverse City, Washington, D.C., Wellington, New Orleans, New Zealand, Shanghai, China and more. Each new festival is organized locally and independently of other Ladyfest events in other states or countries, primarily by volunteers, and most proceeds are donated to non-profit organizations.
Ten years on from the original event Ladyfest is still going strong as a global phenomenon.[ needs update ] The 2010 London Ladyfest was promoted as a "tenth anniversary" event, "celebrating a decade of DIY feminist arts and activism". [9] [10]
Ladyfests in the world propose different kinds of activities, such as concerts, workshops, conferences, debates, about very diverse topics. Workshops range from screenprinting, carpentry, stop-motion, plumbing-lessons to crocheting. [11] [12] [13] [14]
Ladyfest has inspired spin off events such as LaD.I.Y.fest in Berlin, Grrl Fest in Melbourne, and Grrl Fair in Santa Ana, CA. LaD.I.Y fest in Berlin aimed to emphasise the do-it-yourself, participatory aspect of the festival. And Grrl Fest in Melbourne started in 2013 in a warehouse in Melbourne. Harbouring the same ethos as a Lady Fest including music, art, zines and stalls. Grrl Fest is now an annual event with a wide network and sponsors: www.grrlfest.com Grrl Fair in Santa Ana started in 2001 and ran through 2013. Organizers were inspired by fests like Ladyfest and Homo-a-gogo and wanted to bring DIY feminist punk ethos to their community.
A zine is a small-circulation self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images, usually reproduced via a copy machine. Zines are the product of either a single person or of a very small group, and are popularly photocopied into physical prints for circulation. A fanzine is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest. The term was coined in an October 1940 science fiction fanzine by Russ Chauvenet and popularized within science fiction fandom, entering the Oxford English Dictionary in 1949.
Bikini Kill is an American punk rock band formed in Olympia, Washington, in October 1990. The group originally consisted of singer and songwriter Kathleen Hanna, guitarist Billy Karren, bassist Kathi Wilcox, and drummer Tobi Vail. The band pioneered the riot grrrl movement, with feminist lyrics and fiery performances. Their music is characteristically abrasive and hardcore-influenced. After two full-length albums, several EPs and two compilations, they disbanded in 1997. The band reunited for tours in 2019 and 2022, with Erica Dawn Lyle on guitar in place of Karren.
Queercore is a cultural/social movement that began in the mid-1980s as an offshoot of the punk subculture and a music genre that comes from punk rock. It is distinguished by its discontent with society in general, and specifically society's disapproval of the LGBT community. Queercore expresses itself in a DIY style through magazines, music, writing and film.
Kathleen Hanna is an American singer, musician and pioneer of the feminist punk riot grrrl movement, and punk zine writer. In the early-to-mid-1990s, she was the lead singer of feminist punk band Bikini Kill, and then fronted the electronic rock band Le Tigre in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Since 2010, she has recorded as The Julie Ruin.
Tobi Celeste Vail is an American independent musician, music critic and feminist activist from Olympia, Washington. She was a central figure in the riot grrl scene—she coined the spelling of "grrl"—and she started the zine Jigsaw. A drummer, guitarist and singer, she was a founding member of the band Bikini Kill. Vail has collaborated in several other bands figuring in the Olympia music scene. Vail writes for eMusic.
The port city of Olympia, Washington, has been a center of post-hardcore, anti-folk, and other youth-oriented musical genres since the late 1970s. Before this period, Olympia's The Fleetwoods had several Billboard chart successes between 1959 and 1963. Olympia saw a rise in feminism in the music industry, where artists commonly addressed rape, domestic abuse, sexuality, racism, patriarchy, classism, anarchism, and female empowerment in their songs. It was a center for the riot grrrl movement of the early 1990s, which featured Bikini Kill and Bratmobile.
Allison Wolfe is a Los Angeles–based singer, songwriter, writer, and podcaster. As a founding member and lead singer of the punk rock band Bratmobile, she became one of the leading voices of the riot grrl movement.
Women's music is a type of music base on the ideas of feminist separatism and lesbian-separatism, designed to inspire feminist consciousness, chiefly in Western popular music, to promote music "by women, for women, and about women".
Emily's Sassy Lime was an American punk rock group from Southern California. The group was formed in 1993 by three Asian American teenagers: sisters Wendy Yao and Amy Yao, and their friend Emily Ryan.
Not Bad for a Girl is a documentary on women musicians of the 1990s from the indie rock music genre grunge and riot grrrl and celebrates madness, creativity, and gender play. It was written, directed, produced and shot by rock phenomenologist feminist Lisa Rose Apramian, edited, shot and co-produced by drummer Kyle C. Kyle and co-produced by Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain. A DVD, with a booklet, was available for purchase at the official website and a release date for the sequel book is still in the works as of 2019.
Feminism has affected culture in many ways, and has famously been theorized in relation to culture by Angela McRobbie, Laura Mulvey and others. Timothy Laurie and Jessica Kean have argued that "one of [feminism's] most important innovations has been to seriously examine the ways women receive popular culture, given that so much pop culture is made by and for men." This is reflected in a variety of forms, including literature, music, film and other screen cultures.
Skinned Teen was a riot grrrl band from London, England, active in the early 1990s. They have been cited as an inspiration by Beth Ditto, Kathleen Hanna, Gina Birch and Josephine Olausson of Love Is All.
Riot grrrl is an underground feminist punk movement that began during the early 1990s within the United States in Olympia, Washington, and the greater Pacific Northwest, and has expanded to at least 26 other countries. A subcultural movement that combines feminism, punk music, and politics, it is often associated with third-wave feminism, which is sometimes seen as having grown out of the riot grrrl movement and has recently been seen in fourth-wave feminist punk music that rose in the 2010s. The genre has also been described as coming out of indie rock, with the punk scene serving as an inspiration for a movement in which women could express anger, rage, and frustration, emotions considered socially acceptable for male songwriters but less commonly for women.
The International Pop Underground Convention was a 1991 punk and alternative rock music festival in Olympia, Washington. The six-day convention centered on a series of performances at the Capitol Theater. Throughout August 20–25, 1991, an exceptionally large number of independent bands played, mingled and collaborated at the Capitol and other venues within the Olympia music scene. A compilation of live music from the event was released later by the local record label K Records.
Allston D.I.Y. Festival is an annual community event in Allston, Massachusetts, United States, which takes place during one Saturday each July. Founded in 2010, it was promoted as a free, all-ages, sober festival celebrating do-it-yourself culture. Founded on a punk, anarchist & anti-capitalist ethos, the festival discouraged the use of money and was organized non-hierarchically in a series of open meetings.
Linus was an indie band from London, England, formed in 1992. They were integral to the early UK riot grrrl scene and considered an essential early riot grrl band.
Women have made significant contributions to punk rock music and its subculture since its inception in the 1970s. In contrast to the rock music and heavy metal scenes of the 1970s, which were dominated by men, the anarchic, counter-cultural mindset of the punk scene in mid-and-late 1970s encouraged women to participate. This participation played a role in the historical development of punk music, especially in the US and UK at that time, and continues to influence and enable future generations. Women have participated in the punk scene as lead singers, instrumentalists, as all-female bands, zine contributors and fashion designers.
Big Grrrl Small World is the second studio album by American rapper and singer Lizzo. It was released on her own record label BGSW on December 11, 2015. The album received "generally favorable reviews" from critics.
DIY Space for London was a volunteer-run social centre, music venue, rehearsal space, and creative hub formerly located at 96-108 Ormside Street in South Bermondsey, London.