JOAN JETT has talked about the influence of her seminal band The Runaways at the premiere of the film about the band at the Sundance Festival. She said,
"For women and girls especially, who are developing, trying to figure out who they are, being told you're a cunt, you're a dyke, you're a slut, you're a whore-- because you're playing a guitar? It's ridiculous. I think that a lot of people, a lot of women might just say after a while, maybe getting spit on, yelled at doing shows, oeople saying things, giggling, laughing at you, bands not giving you sound checks because you're a girl. They'll go, I'm gonna do something else, it's not worth it. For me, I threw in my lot at 16. This was what it was about until I was absolutely forced to take another course, and that never really happened."
She also pondered the state of rock 'n' roll today:
"I think the whole concept of rock and roll-- I'm wondering what it means anymore. The press has taken the word "rock" and destroyed it. Food rocks. Clothes rock. Pop stars rock. No, pop stars pop, rock stars rock. It means nothing, so you might as well just stop using it in context with music. I think there's a lot of people out there who still have it, but they're the ones doing it on the scene. They're the ones in the basements, in the clubs, toiling the way you should be doing it. That stuff is face to face You can use the internet and the tech media to get the word out, but that shouldn't be the main thing. You've got to get your ass out on the road, play all the clubs-- yes, it's hard work. That's what it is, it's work."
