Trailblazing Feminist Musician Memoir

 Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk by Kathleen Hanna

Rebel Girl book cover

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for allowing me to preview Kathleen Hanna’s Rebel Girl. This book was amazing—I didn’t realize how much fun it would be, and Hanna’s ability to make some of the most fraught and emotionally challenging moments of her life kind of humorous made this book highly engaging. Furthermore, her work in music and art, and as a feminist activist bringing “girls to the front” also made this book an important read for anyone interested in art, music, culture, and politics. About 12 years ago, I had the opportunity to sit in on a discussion on Kathleen Hanna and Sara Marcus, author of Girls to the Front, at University of Pennsylvania’s Kelly House. At the time, I wasn’t that familiar with Bikini Kill or Le Tigre, but I kind of knew about them tangentially. I went with some friends who were more into Riot Girl and Zines. It was interesting to learn more about this movement, but Hanna’s book (and Sara Marcus’s book as well) provide some more insight. I’m not a major Bikini Kill fan, but I appreciate their music—it’s on my running playlists, since I really like the fast beats. After reading this book, I now want to listen to more of Kathleen Hanna’s work with Le Tigre and Julie Ruin.

This book was a blast to read, and I didn’t expect that. One of the themes that Hanna repeatedly revisits is how her reputation often precedes her—and sadly this is something that happens to a lot of women and girls. I assumed that this would be a serious and angry book by an angry feminist. I don’t have anything against that, but I was unprepared for how funny this book would be. Even cringeworthy moments Hanna shares about her early life, growing up, and her family are presented in a kind of humorous reflection. If anything, this book also helps to reassert misconceptions about feminism and how it is more about empowerment than putting down men. I hope that other men also read this book to gain a better understanding on feminism in music and the importance of feminism for society. There are some serious moments and some points that made me pause and just kind of be shocked about some of the things her father did. However, I appreciated her ability to look back on these moments and claim them as something that has ultimately made her stronger and provided her with ways of dealing with difficult people, especially difficult men. I also think it’s helpful for me, as a man and a father, to read about these challenging experiences to remind myself of how not to act and to be aware of the potential challenges and dangers that my daughter might experience. Beyond her family life, it’s important to identify how other social institutions like school, arts, and work can serve as barriers to authentic participation and contributions for many women. In much the same way as Crying in H Mart, Michelle Zauner’s amazing memoir about becoming an artist and musician, Hanna shares about the challenges of becoming a musician and developing as a female musician in predominantly male spaces. It was great to read about how she worked with other women to develop their own spaces and about the steps she took to make girls more comfortable and empowered at shows.

I also liked how there were kind of like different styles of writing for the different periods of her life. Hanna’s childhood is reflected with some humor, where she provides self-deprecating remarks about her musical choices, dress, and participation in activities. I also liked reading about “Good Times” her sister and their relationship. As she goes to college, her writing becomes more serious, but she also develops more detail and analysis of her experiences, highlighting the kinds of inequalities and barriers she experienced that motivated her to continue to advocate and push for greater opportunities and equality. I really enjoyed reading about her art and the process of developing her art. I wasn’t aware of this part of her background, but I can see her photography and art background in much of the Bikini Kill artwork. It was also fascinating to learn more about the Olympia and K Records scene, even if it is not a huge part of the book. Kurt Cobain looms large in the book, and I wasn’t aware of how close Kathleen Hanna and him were (I knew about the Teen Spirit influence from Tobi Vail). It was really interesting to see how Hanna participated and helped develop the Olympia scene, and also spread the scene for women around the country by touring, sharing and publishing zines, and sending out postcards and mailers. Reading about this kind of information sharing in the pre-internet days is fascinating and I can see how much work it was to develop these kinds of connections and empower other young women to start their own bands and zines. I found these parts to be some of the most powerful and engaging—I really enjoyed learning about how her work with Bikini Kill led to more participation for women in music. Another part of the book that was great to read was her love for Adam Horovitz, AKA Ad Rock from the Beastie Boys. I didn’t realize how long they were together, and just reading about the first time she noticed him was so sweet and endearing. There’s a great story about a Beastie Boys poster that I won’t spoil, but again, it highlights some of the humor in her writing. She also addresses some other serious points in her life with a kind of humor that is hard to imagine, but I also think it is what makes her so tough and able to manage these challenging situations. 

I didn’t realize how much Kathleen Hanna’s bands related to many of the other groups and musical scenes I followed in college. Reading about her experiences developing the Zine scene and Bikini Kill was exciting, interesting, and took me back to other experiences of being around bands and artists in my late teens and early 20s. Not only was this book enjoyable to see about how an artist and activist developed her voice and helped create an important musical scene and social movement, but it was also a fun and engaging read with some awesome pictures for each chapter. I highly recommend this book, and I hope that her experience writing this memoir also allows Kathleen Hanna to write another book, whether it be focused on artistic development or advocating for equity and justice.