Kathy Valentine (The Go-Go's) with Sadie Dupuis (Speedy Ortiz)

On this week's Talkhouse Podcast, we’ve got a fabulous cross-generational conversation between two women separated by a good number of years but united by a punk spirit: Kathy Valentine of The Go-Go’s and Sadie Dupuis of Speedy Ortiz and Sad13.

It’s no overstatement to say that Kathy Valentine has a massive place in music history as part of The Go-Go’s, who burst from the L.A. punk scene of the late ‘70s and into the musical mainstream in the early ‘80s. They were the first (and still only!) all-woman band who wrote and performed their own songs to top the Billboard charts, and their debut album Beauty And The Beat remains a classic to this day. 

It’s been an amazing career for Valentine and her band, some of which she recalls in her excellent memoir, called All I Ever Wanted, which came out last year. If you’re more of a viewer than a reader, there’s also a great Go-Go’s documentary on Showtime that covers the remarkable band’s career. This year—finally, after being eligible for 15 years—the Go-Go’s have been voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. They’ll be inducted next month alongside Foo Fighters, Todd Rundgren, Jay-Z, Tina Turner, and Carole King. Good company. These days, Valentine lives in Austin, makes her own music when she’s not writing or doing charitable work, and occasionally gigs with The Go-Go’s.

Sadie Dupuis lived in Austin very briefly—the two get into that—not long before she started the band that would launch her career, Speedy Ortiz, in Massachusetts. With Speedy, she’s released three albums—the latest is 2018’s Twerp Verse—and as Sad13, she’s released another two, including last year’s fully vibing Haunted Painting. She’s also released a book of poems called Mouthguard, and perhaps most importantly, she’s been dissecting every episode of the Gossip Girl reboot exclusively for the Talkhouse newsletter. Yes, you should subscribe.

Valentine and Dupuis have a great conversation about everything from Sadie’s punk-rock parents—and her dad’s odd connection to the Rock Hall—to the Greenbrier alternative school to the soundtrack that Valentine created to go along with her book. Enjoy.

Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Kathy Valentine and Sadie Dupuis for chatting. If you like what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on all your favorite podcast providers and social media channels. This episode was produced by Melissa Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme was composed by the Range. See you next time!