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Interview with JOAN JETT
from: the-village-idiot.com
by Kent Kessinger
JOAN JETT started the band "JOAN JETT AND THE BLACKHEARTS" when she was 15 in L.A.
At the age of 19 while pursuing a solo career in England she did a few recordings with a former member of the Sex Pistols, one of which was an early version of "I Love Rock and Roll". Later after starting an independent record label called BLACKHEART RECORDS, Jett released "I Love Rock and Roll" which went number one in the Billboards for 8 weeks in row. She has just finished headlining the Warped tour and her new album released this year is called "SINNER".
VI: Why did you pick the title "SINNER" for your new album?
Jett: There’s this whole morality discussion in America between the Left and the Right and the word slipped in quite a bit. It got me thinking, because who is in ‘morality’ is the judge of who the sinner is. What is moral to you- might not be moral to me. It got me thinking about judgment in general, all of us get judged a lot by the way we look. I know I get judged a lot by the way I look and what I do. As human beings we are all sinners, if you have human qualities you’re going to be a sinner, according to all those various religious texts; it’s just about embracing the humanness.
VI: In the song "Five", you are singing about the tabloids?
Jett: In a way, the song is about desire and the tabloids love to find out what your various desires are and expose them and dissect them and turn them inside out.
VI: The song "Riddles" is about the contradictory, complex linguistics of politicians?
Jett: Politicians yes, but particularly this administration because I find them to use this language trick often in their policy statements about various issues. Like the ‘Clear Skies initiative’ which is actually allowing companies to actually put more shit in the air; the ‘healthy forest’ issue where you can build roads and have mining contracts. It’s the opposite, very Orwellian. The ‘No child left behind’ where it’s all about testing, testing. So I find them to be particularly adept at this, they do it all the time. We were close to putting Clinton in the song because of his saying "It depends on what the definition of is, is." This isn’t a song about calling George Bush a moron, this is about really discussing issues that concern our country and to talk about how these guys are employees of us. We pay their incomes and I think sometimes we forget about this. They should be speaking to us in straight, clear language about what is going on in our country, but I didn’t find that the Clinton administration used language in an Orwellian fashion the way this administration makes a practice of it. Also just to see if anyone noticed it, or if I’m crazy.
VI: No, It’s definitely noticeable. The song "Everybody Knows", is that about bondage?
Jett: Yah pretty much, that’s pretty good, most people think it’s about something else but it is about wearing leather and that whole scene.
VI: You performed these songs to troops in Afghanistan?
Jett: Well, some of these songs we have, some of them weren’t written until earlier this year so we didn’t have a chance to play them for the troops but certainly some of the other ones have been.
VI: What was their reaction?
Jett: Well, a song like "Fetish" they loved(Hahaha). They were responding to all of it really well. The troops were very enthusiastic and appreciative.
VI: Where would you say the ‘Riot Grrrl’ movement is right now?
Jett: I was always a fan of a lot of the bands that were considered what the ‘Riot Grrrl’ movement was, like ‘Bikini Kill’, ‘Bratmobile’, ‘L7’ and ‘Babes in Toyland’.
VI: A lot of people consider you a big part of that movement.
Jett: I know I was an inspiration to a lot of those girls but I was never a part of the day to day thing of the ‘Riot Grrl’ movement or the conceiving of it. As far as where it is now, I don’t know if they still consider themselves a movement. I know there are a lot of all girl bands out there trying to make it happen, I played with a lot of them on the Warped tour. So I know they are out there, it’s just a matter of them being able to get an audience because its always a struggle for a girl. There’s this allusion of equality and that’s really not the case and I think that’s really dangerous, that girls can’t seem to make it above the club level.
VI: You joined up with PETA to expose Butterball’s mistreatment and in one case molestation of turkeys. I thought that was interesting.
Jett: Why?
VI: I thought you might want to say something about that.
Jett: Like I said earlier, my cat (her cat died earlier that day) is much more than a cat he’s like my family member and that’s how I look at animals. I have been a vegetarian for about 18 years, not that you have to be a vegetarian to have anything to do with PETA. I think it is really easy for people to separate what is on their plate for with what really goes on. And PETA is well aware that I wear leather and I was concerned that might be an issue with them, but it is something I try to do less and less of and maybe one day I will phase it out. But if me not wearing leather would stop people from killing cows, I would do it tomorrow but me not wearing leather aint gonna stop that. I’m one of those people that says, bring on the bird flu, bring on the mad cow, the animals are going to die either way. It’s more about raising people’s consciousness. If you can go kill an animal, skin it and cook it, then I have no problem with that, but to have someone else put a bolt through its head is a little annoying to me.
VI: Butterball was doing more than just sticking a bolt through a head.
Jett: I read up on this stuff, by the guy John Robbins, the son of one of the Baskin people, and he wrote a book called a diet for a new America. It talks about food processing in America from grain to all the foods and meats we eat and the process where it goes from the farm and how it’s treated. When you read that, if you can still eat what you’re eating, then God Bless you, or maybe not…it’s pretty scary and it’s pretty dirty. I’m talking about USDA approved methods that are still extremely dirty and if most people who are germo-phobes knew what was going on, they wouldn’t eat. I try to find a line between preaching to people but if they bring it up Ill tell them about it. But I don’t want to make people uncomfortable for eating what they are eating because you can’t force people to see it until they are ready to see it.
VI: If you could collaborate with anybody in the music business right now who would it be?
Jett: The first person that came to mind is Ian MacKaye. I think he is the epitome of integrity and I am a big fan of everything he has done from ‘Minor threat’, to ‘Fugazi’ to what he is doing now with a band called the ‘Evans’.
VI: You’re doing something with American Chopper?
Jett: Yah, we are doing a video with them for the song called "Bad Reputation"
VI: Do you have a chopper?
Jett: No everybody thinks I do.
VI: You played Columbia in the "Rocky Horror Picture Show" on Broadway?
Jett: Yes, I loved it. It was different for me. I was nervous but I know the material from when I was a teenager, the movie came out when the RUNAWAYS (Jett’s first band) started. It was very enjoyable.
VI: You have inspired a lot of musicians out there; do you have any advice to these people?
Jett: If it’s something they want to do for a hobby I got nothing to say but have a good time. If it’s something you want to do for a career, if it’s something you believe in and you don’t know if you want to give it a shot, I would say you have to go, you have to give it a shot. Beyond that I would say have good material, be a live act. Get out there and cultivate a live crowd to give you support. I get a lot from playing live, so the emotional payback is a good one. Certainly these days with technology you can print up your own CDs and have your own website started, I would encourage people to use every tool they have and make some noise.
VI: After over thirty years in the business and also being one of the first females to start your own record company, BLACKHEART RECORDS, do you have any thoughts on the business?
Jett: It’s a cutthroat business, it’s changed a lot. The personal touch has been removed, a lot of radio stations had jocks that everyone would listen to- and the jocks had some input on what records were played and that is long gone. There are a million instances of that personal touch being removed. I don’t like it that much but there is nothing you can do about it so you adjust and move on.
VI: Anything you want to say to NC?
Jett: Can’t wait to play for you guys. You guys spawned one of the most fun bands I have seen in a long time. ‘Valiant Thor’, we played with them on the Warped tour and they are awesome guys personally and they are a great kick ass band, so way to go NC for that.
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