Boy/Grrrl Revolutionary: JD Samson

Riot grrrl is an underground DIY movement that has helped to kick-start lives for young females who have wanted to rise above any reliance on men and truly show the world what they were made of. As soon as their ethics hit the world in the early 90s, grrrls rallied together to communicate female empowerment on a global scale via photocopied zines (which have since graduated into the form of blogs), organised festivals dubbed as Ladyfests or Homo A Go-Gos in their local areas and wholly created their own music scene. All in all, they have independently presented people with multimedia platforms in which they could openly express their opinions and most importantly, helped a minority to gain a voice. Included are those who felt they didn’t fit to the ideals presented to them in billboard advertisements and the celebrity ideal that gains popularity daily in the overground media circuit. Never before have people been marketed products so aggressively, especially those of the beauty variety, which cleverly play on people’s emotions and worst of all, their self-confidence (or lack thereof).

All of the grrrls involved with the movement have relentlessly challenged the world’s perception of what a woman’s role in the world is. In the early days, bands that utilised riot grrrl formula to get their music to the masses were Sleater-Kinney, Bis, Huggy Bear, Heavens To Betsy and Bikini Kill. One of the latest musical acts to emerge from the scene would have to be The Gossip, whose songstress Beth Ditto had been one of the young grrrls in the audience empowered by the community to get up on stage and let the music she sang take her away from a world where your size was more important than your IQ. Back in the 90s, though, one of the first commercially popular bands was Le Tigre. As a young riot grrrl of that time who has gone on to be inspired to become an Artiste Manager/Journalist with a distinct sense of feminism, it was fascinating for me to see their lineup come alive on stage: zine editor Johanna Fateman, riot grrrl godmother Kathleen Hannah and last but certainly not least, JD Samson. With her trademark homegrown mustache and attire that most of society would deem masculine, it was clear that JD was a force to be reckoned with and that she truly believed in herself and her fellow grrrls. Unafraid to be scorned by the music press, or the world at large and its perception of exactly which gender group she belonged, JD (née Jocelyn Samson) has since been onstage with Peaches as one of The Herms, played in and recorded for musical side project The New England Roses, formed her own conceptual dance group Dykes Can Dance (to prove that they can), began performing in her latest musical endeavor, MEN, became a much sought after DJane and made two calendars of herself – all of which has helped her to gain a positive reputation throughout as she consistently questions society’s perception of genders. With her distinctively androgynous appearance, JD has smashed through countless barriers and is hailed as both an icon above and underground. This grrrl truly has re-written the rules, and she defines what being a new age diva is all about.

Expatriarch: When you were in Le Tigre, what was the music industry’s reaction to you at that time, and has that changed?

JD: The music industry’s reaction to the band was pretty positive. We basically had amazing press all the time, and everyone supported us unconditionally as musicians and as feminists. We were praised for making a new crazy kind of music and building a new feminist queer scene.

Do you feel that any notable changes in attitude towards females in the music industry came as a result of the riot grrrl movement?

Yes, I think riot grrrl had a lot of effect on females in the music industry. I think it gave female musicians the ability to make music that wasn’t folk or pop and to build a scene that made it safe to be angry. I also think that it really opened the doors to an understanding of the future of women and music. Since riot grrrl, there have been so many new movements of women coming together and creating, for example Ladyfest, Homo A Go-Go, etc.

As it is such a relatively new phenomenon (in the mainstream, that is!), can you please explain what gender redefinition means? Do you perceive yourself to be a part of the movement?

Well, by gender redefinition, I guess you mean transgender. I think there has been a trans revolution in the past 10 years for sure. Defining it is hard these days because I think everyone is in a place of creating their own gender, whatever that may be. People are building something between female and male and something that defies the binary gender spectrum of female and male. Everyone is asking, what is a man? What is a woman?

At what point did you feel most comfortable adopting your androgynous look?

I guess when I left Ohio, I just kind of let myself be, and that’s when I let my mustache grow and let myself be how I was intended to be.

Was there a time in music that shifted the world’s mentality, when suddenly the assessment of artistes’ musical abilities wasn’t based on whether they stood up or sat down to pee?

No – I think there is still a problem. I don’t think that this moment has occurred yet. Spike TV still has a “men fight back” weekend.

How has the world’s perception changed on the gay and queer scene and those who surround it? Would you say that any specific people have been instrumental in these changes?

I think that we are living in a time where hipsters love gays, and hipsters are shaping the music industry. So gays are cool and queers are rad, and we are lucky to have an opening in people’s brains so that we can make our art and feel safe and have an audience that appreciates us. We can be loved for our talent.

How do you feel about ‘divas’ in the music industry who put on extravagant shows? Do you feel that they are letting other females down or doing the opposite?

I love divas. It is all about performance and building a show that is not only entertaining, but inspiring for the mainstream and maintaining artistic intent. For example, Beyonce has an all-female band and her show is fucking amazing. I am so glad she has the show she does.

What females in the music industry are currently helping to move things forward?

Beyonce, Beth Ditto, Amanda Blank, Peaches and Christina Aguilera.

What would you like to happen next for transgender people in the music industry?

I would love to have equal rights for everyone and to be paid equally and treated equally by promoters and sound guys.

Editor’s note: This interview by Jobot originally appeared in amended form in the September 2009 issue of Electronic Beats.