Punk icon Kathleen Hanna discusses her new memoir, navigating trauma, empowering women in punk music, controlling live show dynamics, evolving career choices, and embracing the Rebel Girl concept with guest host Roxane Gay.
Kathleen Hanna balances trauma and joy in her memoir to transform perspectives towards gratitude.
Hanna challenges authenticity norms in the music industry, empowering female concert-goers to redefine norms.
Maintaining boundaries and providing collective resources are crucial for Hanna's mental health amidst supporting survivors of abuse.
Deep dives
Taking Control of Her Story
Kathleen Hanna's memoir, Rebel Girl, sheds light on her decision to omit certain traumatic experiences in favor of focusing on joyful memories. Initially facing a voluminous 600-page draft, Hanna collaborated with an editor to trim the content and strike a balance between narrating less stellar aspects of her life and rediscovering moments of joy. By incorporating both challenges and gratitudes, the process not only refined her book but also transformed her perspective towards gratitude.
Challenging Gender Norms in Performance
Hanna's journey in the music industry, particularly in punk bands like Bikini Kill and La Tigra, reflects on the inherent misogyny and harassment she encountered stage. As she empowered female audiences to occupy the front rows during performances, resistance from male attendees turned into protection for female concert-goers. Hanna's evolution from being labeled a 'fake band' to challenging authenticity norms emphasized her pursuit of connection over conforming to predefined standards.
Balancing Trauma and Empathy
Acknowledging the mental toll of supporting survivors of abuse and harassment, Hanna highlighted her transition to maintaining boundaries for self-preservation while ensuring access to resources for audience members. Despite the honor in being entrusted with personal stories, the accumulation of these narratives took a toll on her emotional well-being, prompting a shift towards providing collective resources online to safeguard her mental health and enhance her artistic performance.
Creative Evolution through Collaboration
Hanna's ability to reinvent herself creatively stems from her deliberate choice of collaborators based on intellect, personality, and humor over technical expertise. Embracing change across various mediums, from music to writing, her sustained energy derives from aligning her creative pursuits with core values of feminism and societal change. The joy of experimentation and collaboration has enabled her to navigate transitions between projects while finding beauty in the process of artistic evolution.
Embracing Vulnerability through Writing
Transitioning from the physicality of performing on stage to the solitary nature of writing, Hanna finds solace in the introspective space that writing offers. Despite the challenges of loneliness and self-doubt in the writing process, collaboration with editors provides a supportive environment for creative exchange and clarity. Acknowledging the fallibility of memory and embracing subjective interpretations underscore her approach to crafting personal narratives infused with honesty and perspective.
Punk singer, artist, and the front-woman of the bands Bikini Kill and Le Tigre, Kathleen Hanna has spent the last three decades as a trailblazer in the punk feminist movement. She joins guest host Roxane Gay to talk about her new memoir and storied career making art and music.
