6 minute read
By Pavton Cavanaugh
(Joan Jett, “Bad Reputation”)
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The sound of teenage rebellion blasts through my headphones as I’m walking down my crowded high school hallways. Typical drama, typical annoyance with the idiocy of our patriarchal society, and yet I was completely convinced that everyone around me couldn’t possibly understand. With Joan Jett, The Slits, Sunflower Bean, and The Runaways shuffling through my ears, I felt empowered and reminded of the beauty of individuality. They emphasized the importance of unapologetically taking up space, affirming confidence in my own womanhood.
I’ve always known music to be a piece of what formed me into the person I am today and understood the self-discovery it represents. I like to believe that same truth applies to the lives of so many others.
In my experience, rock music helps me understand my individuality and my experiences as a woman. Rock showed me that expressing my womanhood is not weak and being authentic is more compelling, which is ironic considering how male-dominated and perceived the genre is. This only made women in the industry all the more inspiring to me. Sixteen-year-old me would take Tina Turner or Stevie Nicks over Axl Rose any day. Their ideas made me realize that my attributes are what make me who I am: I don’t ever
have to conform myself, my ideas or my future to fit the expectations of a society meant to constrain me.
When I first came to Emerson, I truly believed that I knew exactly what I wanted my future to look like. My Foundations of Journalism class quickly reality-checked me. I was assigned to cover an event for the class and decided to attend a small rock showcase in Maynard, Massachusetts for an up-and-coming label, Red on Red Records. The label’s mission and creation is rooted in aiding in the promotion of women in rock.
As I interviewed band members and watched these absolute powerhouses of women perform, I couldn’t help but reflect on my own growth through this music; it was comforting and impactful to witness the pivotal meaning it held to others. That night, I also spoke to Justine Covault, the label’s founder. She provided me with insight into the industry, highlighting the ways in which women are disproportionately affected by male dominance, sexism, and ageism. I spoke to Justine again recently to gain more insight into her label and unpack
Their ideas made me realize that my attributes are what make me who I am: I don’t ever have to conform myself, my ideas or my future to fit the expectations of a society meant to constrain me.
the effects of this industry on her personally.
In the fall of 2019, Covault and a few women musicians in the Greater Boston area decided they wanted to put on a few shows together. Their pop-punk bands all had strong female presences. They wanted to highlight that and collaborate with one another to create a space where they could showcase their art and express themselves through their music. Their idea came to fruition through WhistleStop Rock, a traveling festival beginning in the winter of that year only to be stopped short by the pandemic.
The complexities of navigating the pandemic didn’t stop them from creating their art. Covault and the other women ended up collaborating and recording their song “Queen of the Drive-In” and even filmed separate clips to piece together for a music video.
“It was very fun,” Covault said, “just this very collaborative, supportive spirit amongst all these women musicians.”
Covault spoke more to her inspiration behind her work, crediting a lot of her driving force to a collective called Book More Women. The group takes posters of music festivals and concert lineups and crosses out all male bands, leaving the few female-inclusive bands remaining. The idea is to create a visualization of the disproportionate affects this industry has on women due to patriarchal concepts limiting their platform.
“It’s improved greatly since I first started playing, but it’s still an issue,” said Covault.
She put her own spin of Book More Women’s efforts onto WhistleStop Rock Festival,
explaining that crossing out any male performers on their poster “would be exactly the same,” except this time more positive. She didn’t want the pandemic to halt her efforts to reframe the narrative, especially when it just started to feel like things were progressing in the right direction. With free time and fresh ideas, the same principles of the festival informed the foundation of her label.
“Musically, it felt like we were in charge of our own destiny, but from a business perspective, it did not. I feel like now, I’m managing my musical destiny to the best of my ability, and those of the artists on my roster,” Covault said.
Being an active musician in the genre since the 1980s, Covault is no stranger to the challenges and their discrete evolutions over the years. Covault notices the struggles this industry places on musicians such as herself, like sexism and ageism, but she doesn’t let it define her, and she certainly does not let it stop her from doing what she loves.
“If you look at the intersection of being female and being of a certain age, it’s like you’re supposed to be invisible at that point,” Covault said. “No one is supposed to look at you, or notice you, or care about your creative life. This label is saying the opposite. For a lot of these bands, this is the apex of their work, and it deserves to be heard.”
I never felt fully comfortable with my uniqueness until I had soundtracks from female punk and rock artists guiding my transitions in high school and adulthood. Covault shared similar sentiments, illustrating the timeless universality of discovery and celebration apparent in their music.
“Just being able to create your own thing that’s meaningful to you, to be loud and in people’s faces, it’s very empowering,” Covault said. “It’s kind of like, ‘You’re not gonna shut me up. I’m gonna say what I think in the way that I want to say it.”
Covault went on to talk about her daughter, now twenty-three and a guitarist in a local band. She also took an interest in the same artists, relishing in the badass nature conveyed in their tone and lyricism. I couldn’t help but think of my own mother while Covault described this — she introduced me to Joan Jett, making the conversation feel even more special and interesting.
Covault shared her biggest takeaways from being in this industry and fully immersing herself into the world of punk and rock.
“Don’t listen to people who tell you that you can’t do things,” she said, “You just have to do what you want and what you believe, and things will work out.”
