Online
organization promotes female independent
rockers
By
Laura Goolsby
On-line Forty-Niner
Women
rock! That's the message GoGirlsMusic.com
hopes to get across with its GoGirls Music
Festival at the Liquid Lounge in Long
Beach Thursday night.
The
concert, part of an 18-city tour, will
showcase independent women, said Kelly
Z, coordinator of the Long Beach show,
and lead singer of Kelly's Lot.
"It's
all acoustic but we're still going to
rock," she said. "It's a cool
way to see these bands, to see them stripped
down and rocking out."
This
concert has something for everyone who
wants to rock out. In addition to Kelly's
Lot the concert will feature Holly Light,
Red 7's, Kanary, Breech, all different
bands with unique sounds ranging from
Celtic rock to blues.
All
proceeds from the show will benefit the
Portland, Ore., Rock 'n Roll Camp for
Girls scholarship fund. Girls from age
8 to 18 can attend this day camp as an
alternative to traditional summer camp
while polishing their musical skills,
said Madalyn Sklar, founder of GoGirlsMusic.com.
"A
lot of the performers were like, 'how
come they didn't have something like this
when I was a kid?'" Sklar said. "They
wanted to know how they could be a part
of it."
Some
of the performers loved the idea of supporting
such a unique charity.
"This
is where I would've wanted to go as a
child," said Leslie Knauer, one of
the coordinators of the show, and lead
singer and guitarist for Kanary. "
It just seemed so fun and positive."
In
fact, positive enthusiasm is what the
organization is all about. Beginning nearly
eight years ago, GoGirl was Sklar's answer
to the lack of support for women in music.
"As
a teenager, I would go into guitar shops
and be ignored," said Sklar, who
lives in Texas. "I would think, what's
going on here? Is it just me, is it Texas,
or is it because I'm a girl?"
The
organization intends to erase that stigma
by gathering a support and networking
group for women musicians.
"Girls
can't just stop doing music because the
odds are a certain way," Knauer said.
Women
all over the country that are in the music
business can join the organization for
independent artists, receiving the benefits
of a supportive network of women musicians,
Sklar said.
"GoGirls
has really turned into a big deal,"
Z said. "It gets bigger every year."
"I
don't like separating myself from men,"
Knauer said. "I just love Rock 'n
Roll."
EVENTS
LISTING
What:
4th Annual GoGirls Music Fest
When: 8 p.m., Thursday
Where: Liquid Lounge 3522 Anaheim St.,
Long Beach, CA
For Information: WWW.GoGirlsMusic.Com
