Girls That Rock - Part 1

3GIRLS THAT ROCK Female rocker blurs gender lines

PART 1: Metal Chick Lennon Murphy scowls and growls with the big boys

By KELLI FADROSKI

Daily Titan Staff

For decades, women have rocked the music world. Billie Holiday once dominated the jazz scene, Etta James singing her soulful “At Last” had America swooning, Carol King wrote her Tapestry, Diana Ross and the Supremes brought soul, the outrageous Patty Smyth had pretty girls wearing skin-tight leather, Melissa Etheridge claimed “Yes I Am,” and Gwen Stefani set out to prove she was more than “Just a Girl.” In a male-dominated industry, these women were able to break through, and destroy, the gender barrier.

In the current rock music scene, males dominate the charts. Females in rock appear to be dwindling or crossing over to other various music genres and only a few hip-hop and pop ladies have been able to dethrone the men. In the seemingly sleepy female arena, there are many ladies working within a more independent scene, just waiting for their moment to break through.

Twenty-year-old metal-rocker Lennon Murphy, also known as just Lennon, is out to prove that just because she’s female, doesn’t mean she can’t growl and scowl with the big boys.

“Honestly, I’m not that big of a fan of female singers,” Lennon said. “I have always adored Ani DiFranco, but for me, I don’t look at artists as either male or female. I’ve always based my love of music on lyrics and being able to make a connection with the music. Ani DiFranco … I respect what she’s done, she’s a very honest writer but I don’t look at her as a ‘female’ writer, I just look at her as a writer.”

Lennon has had a bumpy career. She’s been knocked down and kicked around by an industry that failed to give her and her band the credit their fans felt they deserved. Lennon’s debut album 5:30 Saturday Morning was released on Sept. 11, 2001 and overshadowed by terrorist attacks. Her metal edge with tracks such as “Property of a Goatfucker” kept her from receiving any air-play during an ultra conservative and sensitive time. Ultimately Lennon was dropped from Arista Records and forced to take her talents elsewhere. Now she’s back and working on a new album with her band, I Am. She’s not afraid to strut out on stage and show the crowd what’s in her soul.

“No one really wants to see an opening band,” Lennon said. “We don’t even want to see an opening band because they suck and sound like everything else and personally, I’d rather be drinking or smoking. But some people look and they say they see the way I look and then decide to listen for a minute. They say the looks got them there fi rst, but the music kept them there. To me, that’s the greatest comment I can get because the music was able to keep someone listening that would not normally listen to this music or even care about the band to begin with.”

A l t h o u g h Lennon is used to touring with hardcore acts like Mushroomhead, The Cult and Otep, she’s not at all intimidated in front of a predominately male audience.

“We opened up for Mushroomhead on Halloween,” Lennon said. “I don’t scream, so right there, that’s a disadvantage and I’m female, and if we’re gonna get killed, those are the shows we’d get killed at … but we had one of the best mosh pits going on.”

Even with live performance success, Lennon’s songs were never picked up by radio stations.

“I’ve had radio stations tell me that I can’t get play because I am

Don’t make yourself a female artist, make yourself an artist.

Lennon Murphy

Female metal-rocker “ ”

a female artist,” Lennon said. “They love the song, think I’m great live, respect me and I’m one of their ‘buddies’ but they can’t play me because I’m female.”

Lennon is skeptical about the music business, but continues to perform the music that crawls beneath her skin and reminds herself that guys go through the same things on stage.

“Don’t make yourself a female artist, make yourself an artist,” Lennon said. “If you’re beautiful, then use what you’ve got. You’re putting on a show. Guys do the same thing when they go on stage. It’s just like being in a play or the circus, in the movies or any form of entertainment. If you have great music, that’s great, but you have to get someone to listen to it and fi gure out how to keep them to listening to it.” JOHN GALT ENTERTAINMENT Lennon Murphy fi ts in with the best of the boys.