San Francisco, CA, June 16, 2010
On Wednesday, June 16th, 2010, San Franciscans will pack The Independent to celebrate the fourth anniversary of the WomenROCK Collective, a group that has contributed to making the city by the bay a great place for women musicians and their fans.
Founded in San Francisco in 2006, the collective strives to empower female artists in the music industry at the local, national, and international level while raising awareness and money for important causes.
Women make up less than ten percent of the music industry and less than six percent in executive, producer or engineer roles. Women who do achieve commercial success are often over-sexualized and objectified, leaving women who don’t fit the mold out in the cold. WomenROCK was created in response to this situation by a group of talented and motivated women musicians, producers, and promoters (including *bernadette*, Valerie Orth, Lisa Sniderman, Sylvia Roberts, Kristin Hathaway, Zarah Gamaldi, Jessie Woletz, Melissa Rapp, Nomi Adiv, Nkechi Live, Vanessa Verlee, Eva Jo Meyers, Marianne Barlow, Abigail Picache and others) who decided to work together to raise visibility and opportunity for themselves and the other women artists in their community.
“We are organizing ourselves to work together to showcase our creative endeavors, talents, intellect, business savvy and penchant for community-building and activism,” says the celebration’s organizer and WomenROCK visionary *bernadette*, who is also one of the artists being showcased at The Independent.
Since its inception, WomenROCK has presented monthly showcase performances and special one-off shows in San Francisco, and has raised money for Bay Area and national organizations, including IMPACT Bay Area, Breast Cancer Action, Blue Bear School of Music, Women’s Community Clinic, and more.
Wednesday’s performers will include:
As members of San Francisco’s celebrated Halou, Ryan and Rebecca Coseboom built up a remarkable body of material and worked with a wide range of iconoclastic artists including DJ Shadow (on his infamous Radiohead remix), Low, Cocteau Twins guitarist Robin Guthrie, and the Velvet Underground’s John Cale. When Halou came to an end after a US tour with indie legend Bob Mould, they regrouped quickly and launched their new project, Stripmall Architecture with guitarist Tim Hingston and drummer Patrick Harte. Now, in 2010, Stripmall Architecture have released their second album, Feathersongs for Factory Girls, entirely funded by their dedicated fanbase across the US and the globe.
Conspiracy of Venus is a groundbreaking women’s community activist a cappella choir based in San Francisco. Under the artistic direction of Joyce Todd McBride, the ensemble’s 40 singers perform McBride’s daring and inventive arrangements of songs ranging from the classic (Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi”) to the cutting-edge (Bjork’s “Possibly Maybe”). Their repertoire also includes works by Bill Withers, Rufus Wainwright, Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, and Roger Miller. Conspiracy of Venus has performed to sold-out crowds in venues around the Bay area ranging from The Palace of Fine Arts to the Dublin Women’s Prison.
Israeli-born, Ziva grew up on a small kibbutz, where she began her musical journey playing the cello, saxophone, and singing in the local choir. Becoming increasingly drawn to jazz and R&B music of the United States, she soon found herself as lead singer in a funk band, becoming a local sensation. After serving in the military and attending the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, she relocated to sunny California where her American dreaming is becoming a thriving phenomenon not only in her musical performance but also her organizational skills with WomenROCK and her new endeavor as producer and promoter of the newly formed Bay Vibes.
*bernadette* is taking the stage by storm with her vibrant musical presence and unique vocal sound. She writes heartfelt, sultry songs that encapsulate the essence of San Francisco’s timeless sound with a 60’s sensibility and authentic purity. Hailing from San Francisco, *bernadette* has played the Grand Rooms of San Francisco – The Fillmore, Great American Music Hall, The Independent, Slim’s, Bottom of the Hill, Café Du Nord and festivals around the Bay, playing across the United States as well as touring Europe. Backed by co-conspirator Garrin Benfield on guitar, the two harmonize and play together akin to Gillian Welch & David Rawlings in a brutally honest, soul-baring live performance. *bernadette* is the visionary and one of the co-founders of WomenROCK as well as running the thriving Box Factory art, community and culture space and a co-producer of one of the largest festivals in San Francisco, Power to the Peaceful.
The celebration will also include a burlesque performance by the Cheese Puffs, spoken word by Scorpio Blues, SHEketch comedy from PianoFight’s Monday Night ForePlays, and a dance party with DJ Kipp Glass.
ASL Interpretation of each performance will be provided, and the show will be broadcast live at: http://realize2actualize.ning.com/.
If you live in the Bay Area, come support the power and potential created by women artists who work hard – and play hard – together.
WHEN: Wednesday, June 16th, 2010 at 7:30PM
WHERE: THE INDEPENDENT 628 Divisidero Street, San Francisco, CA 94110.
http://www.theindependentsf.com/ , (415) 771-1421
The Independent is a 21+ venue and is wheelchair accessible.
TICKETS: $12 Advance/$14 at the door.
http://www.ticketweb.com/t3/sale/SaleEventDetail?dispatch=loadSelectionData&eventId=1912905