Women Making Music
Under the radar or rising star, Tressa’s Female Artist Spotlight Night provides a stage for girls to shine!
By: Peggy Ratusz
About two years ago I created, and still maintain when I have time, talley sheets which document the number of male vs the number of female-fronted bands or solo artists who are awarded gigs/performance opportunities from here to California, in venues large and small. I gather my info from online city/county events pages, online entertainment guides, venue websites, artist’s websites and on-line big city newspapers. The disparity is compelling. And common sense tells me it’s not because there are more male-fronted bands and solo artists vying for these spots. As booking manager for two venues in town, I can say from my desk, I see the sexes running pretty neck and neck where inquiries and talent to back it up is concerned.
I have lifetime subscriptions to two music magazines and both publications do “best of” special issues, i.e. 100 best guitar players, 100 best albums, 100 best pop songs, 500 greatest songs of all-time, 100 best songwriters, etc. There’s a huge disparity between male vs. female players, albums, songs and songwriters making it onto these lists. The male side of the equation wins by a mile. I realize by a mile is not a scientific calculation on my part. But I can read English. These lists are compiled by various esteemed panels including music industry leaders and experts, readers, peers… and while I can’t tell you the ratio between how many men vs. how many women make up the experts, readers and peers, the results remain black and white. People don’t find women as popular or as talented because if they did, they’d end up on these lists at least as often as the fellas.
One of the national music magazine’s I subscribe to comes out bi-weekly and has been printing and selling issues at this rate since 1967. Only twenty percent of these covers for the past 40 years have had female music artists, models, actresses, politicians, comedians, etc on them. Covers are based on factors I don’t know. I would imagine they’re decided based on things like record sales, career controversy, and death. I also feel merit factors heavily to be fair.
So while I truly don’t begrudge males who have made it onto these covers, nor do I begrudge the noticeably higher percentile of male-fronted music acts and solo artists who get gigs around this country, I feel it’s worth mentioning even though we all inherently know that it’s still pretty much a man’s world. And the rest of that James Brown hook-line states: but it wouldn’t mean nothin’, without a woman or a girl. And that’s because we’re scrappy, tenacious, creative, talented and motivated while still being problem solvers, nurturers, and supportive of our brothers and sisters, by and large. Not to say that boys don’t also possess these attributes and tendencies, because they do. It’s just that it feels like we women collectively experience and understand more profoundly the struggle; we taste more often the bitterness of rejection no matter the rung we’re occupying on the music industry ladder.
This past April the organizers of The Manna Food Bank asked me to put together a jazz/swing band to play at their prestigious annual charity event, The Blue Jean Ball. Each year, MFB actually pays up to three local bands to perform for their supporters. When I discovered that all of my regular configurations of players were booked elsewhere the night of the Ball, I called up three richly talented female musician friends and asked if they’d like to come out and play. Without hesitation or reservation, Beth Heinberg agreed to play piano/keys and sing, Aileen Pearlman (aka, Big Al) agreed to play electric bass, acoustic guitar and sing, and Nancy Asch agreed to play percussion. The Blue Jean Ball was in just three short weeks at the time. We worked 20 songs or more, played to rave reviews and garnered more bookings from that two hour stint, and enjoyed it so much we thought it might be fun and beneficial to do more together.
I mentioned to them that I’d been lately disgruntled and befuddled by the aforementioned disparity where female vs. male artists are concerned, on what seems to me to be every level. So in order to help balance the budget and tip the scales just a smidge more in the girls’ direction, we named ourselves the ReVamps and decided to host an all girl showcase night.
Those of you who follow my calendar know that Tressa’s Downtown Jazz & Blues Club, at 28 Broadway is truly my home away from home. Tressa Thornton and Terry Abernathy, owners of the club, agreed to allow us two nights per month, to showcase female artists from novices to professionals. This would help keep the ripple effect of opportunities specifically for women musicians and vocalists flowing, even if in a small and humble way.
Our first Female Artist Spotlight Night was in July. We were heartened and encouraged because every table in the joint was taken that evening. The buzz that we as a band and the artists we asked to participate created through websites and social networking proves that men and women in the community, young and old, agree we provide entertainment they feel enthused to support. With the help of the venue and our Do-It-Yourself marketing strategies, what we’re developing is what we like to call a win/win/win/win situation. The venue benefits from the sale of beverages and snacks, the staff benefits from the hourly wage and tips they earn while working; the artists benefit by being allowed an opportunity to shine and get paid for their efforts through a small guarantee plus tips; and most importantly, the audience benefits because to hear these amazing women and the all-female backing band is to find a musically creative collaboration drawn from talent and heart.
Since that first showcase, we’ve had wonderfully attended nights and some not so wonderfully attended nights. The plethora of offerings in downtown Asheville any night of the week for those seeking unique or specific types of live music shows is pretty exciting. But those of us eager to continue the series, meaning the ReVamps, Tressa and Terry, the awesome staff (Skull, Tall Katie, Small Katie, Rebecca and Tatiana), the artists and the regulars who support these nights, all agree that it just needs a little more time to grow; hence my decision to focus on Tressa’s Female Artist Spotlight Night for this November issue.
The amazing women of all ages and backgrounds who have graced the stage these past few months have included some names you’ve possibly heard before and some you have not. Alisa Kuumba, world music performer and vocalist; Linda Go an astoundingly beautiful songstress and guitar player with her impeccable cellist partner; Lyric, the busking Soul singer and songwriter whose Asheville star is rising beyond us, wowed a small but mighty group of listeners last week; Lyndsay Wojcik an Americana singer and songwriter whose Blues and Folk keeps her on the road most of the time; Alicia Cardina, a young and vibrant singer whose unique and compelling delivery soothed a noticeably appreciative crowd. Fourteen year old Country music lover and phenomena Grace Mills and eighteen year old Jazz and Soul singer, Tasha Leif (both students of mine) enthralled a near-packed room. And coming up we have Nikki Talley and Paula Hanke on October 26th. These two artists are quite different in style but both compelling songwriters, amazing instrumentalists and powerhouse singers. One, a touring musician based in Asheville, and the other an Asheville transplant whose tour schedule has slowed down long enough for her to write and record her first solo album.
So you can see, our goal is to be inclusive: women artists who perform original material and women who perform covers are being showcased; women instrumentalists; women who work alone and women who perform with their own band; women vocalists or instrumentalists who use the all-female backing band, The ReVamps; women taking the stage for the first time and women who make music their living. Everyone is paid through the generosity of tips from the audience and a gracious guarantee that the venue throws in.
On November 9th, we’ve beckoned Liz Cyriac, a thirty year old Borg Warner engineer and closet singer, to take the stage with The ReVamps, performing a set with huge range from Dean Martin to Carole King and Adele. That same night you’ll hear Pilar, a Latin music artist performing a mix of originals and traditional songs with her own accomplished group. On November 23rd, two married couples making music together will be featured. Ken and Amy LaDeroute have been performing together for more than twenty five years, covering a vast array of styles. They’ll be performing scaled down, acoustic versions of their funk and soul tunes. Jacqui and Alec Fehl, from Carolina Rex band, will be playing acoustic Blues and Rock with a little Jazz. Also that night, the ReVamps will be playing their entire list of “revamped” popular tunes including selections from The Doors, Linda Rondstadt, Julie London, Fleetwod Mac, Amy Winehouse, The Classics IV and more.
The Female Artist Spotlight Nights happen the second and the fourth Wednesday of the month at 8:30p. Please plan to support and enjoy these special and inspiring shows. There’s no cover charge and no amount too small to slip into the tip jar!
On Wednesday, December 14th, we’ll be starting earlier, 7:30p hosting a benefit night for our Alisa Kuumba who just underwent quadruple by-pass surgery after suffering a heart attack. Many past performers will lend their support including Lyric, Mary Pearson, Linda Go, Elise Pratt and Sharon LaMotte. It’ll be a jammin’ good night and we hope you’ll find time to slip in and hear the girls having fun playing music, supporting one of our own. Proceeds will go directly to Alisa, who like so many professional musicians, does not have adequate health care.
If you know an accomplished female musician of fourteen years of age and up, who would like to participate in an upcoming spotlight night, please give her my email address and send me a link to her website or footage to hear a sampling of her style.
We’re playing it forward and eager for as many of you who can attend and bring a friend, to help keep that ripple effect flowing and the spotlight on.
Peggy Ratusz is a songstress, writer and vocal coach who can be reached at pmarie43@yahoo.com. www.reverbnation.com/peggyratusz