The tragic treatment of Joan Jett by the world of rock

Jett was only 16 years old when she joined the Runaways, an all-female band formed by music industry mogul Kim Fowley to capitalize on the burgeoning punk rock movement. Due to Fowley's previous experience in the industry and widely popular setlist attitudes in both the musical mainstream and punk subculture, The Runaways were never very successful and were largely viewed as a novelty.

In addition, The Runaways appeared to be a means for Fowley to exploit and terrorize the teenage girls in the band. Fowley allegedly encouraged band members to take drugs and drink heavily so he could get them to do whatever he asked. These demands ranged from wearing revealing stage outfits to – according to several allegations – engaging in sexual acts. Several musicians, including Jackie Fuchs, Michael Steele and Kari Krome of The Runaways, have accused Fowley of sexual misconduct, assault and rape.

Jett herself has since stated that she never felt threatened by Fowley and never witnessed any of these heinous crimes. However, it paints a particularly repulsive picture of the treatment and attitudes that Jett and her bandmates had to endure when they were all still teenagers in the music industry.

In addition to this institutionalized oppression, Jett also faced cruel treatment from punk fans themselves. Spitting was depressingly commonplace in the early days of punk, and several well-known groups – The Clash, for example – spoke out against it. In Joan Jett's case, however, the intensity of the spitting seemed to increase because of her gender.

“It is difficult to convey to people what it is like to be spat on,” she said later The Irish period“After the show, I was completely drunk, put my head in my hands and cried out of sheer frustration.” This repeated harsh treatment, in addition to the breakup of The Runaways and the initial failure of The Blackhearts, inevitably had a devastating effect on Jett's mental health.

Jett soon turned to alcohol to drown her sorrows. “I drank a lot, starting at eight in the morning,” she once said, which was later printed in the biography. Bad reputation. “I was angry. I didn't know what to do with a world where girls were abused for playing guitar.” In many ways, the crap Jett had to endure for the obvious crime of wanting to play rock 'n' roll has never gone away.

Although The Blackhearts eventually achieved mainstream success with songs like “Bad Reputation” and “I Love Rock and Roll,” making Jett a much more respected name, that success came with reluctant compromise. When she formed The Blackhearts, Jett sought out only male musicians, as she did not want to repeat the unsavory treatment that an all-female group like The Runaways might receive. In the eyes of many, this diluted Jett's influence, but many other music fans and industry figures still viewed a woman playing rock music as nothing more than a novelty.

Even when sexist attitudes towards women in music were somewhat less common, Jett was still not free from oppression. Her sexuality, for example, suddenly became a common topic of interest and debate in the tabloid press. Much like they had done with Dusty Springfield years earlier, the ambiguity of Jett's sexual orientation was used as a weapon to attack her. To some extent, this is still the case.

The fact that Jett continues to perform despite all the horrific treatment she has endured in the music industry over the past five decades is a testament to her drive and resilience. As a young girl, the only silver lining Jett could cling to was the fact that Suzi Quatro had made a name for herself in rock, so she could too. In turn, Jett herself inspired countless young women and girls to pursue rock music. Perhaps that's why she chose to keep going despite all the setbacks, sexism, and discrimination: to blaze a trail that future women could follow.

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