How many times has a woman, no matter what her age, has heard the phrase “you’re good for a girl” in their lifetime? I bet hundreds, if not thousands. When it comes to music and rock in particular, this phrase becomes rather ubiquitous. Redefining what it means to “play like a girl” is what gave Kim Recor, of the band Dræmings, the idea to create a platform where women could channel their creativity stereotype-free.
Together with a team of local musicians that each specialised in a relevant area, PLAG was soon up and running: Ammo Bankoff, a photographer; PR professional Lisa Fernandez; Laura Peters, graphic designer, who creates Riot grrrl -inspired graphics for the collective, and Francisca Valenzuela, who helped organise the first all-female festival in Chile, Ruidosa. They all united forces to give female musicians, artists, comedians and storytellers the chance to, as Recor says, “play like a girl, write like a girl, create like a girl. It’s about taking away that negative connotation and being like, actually it means you’re killing it if you’re playing like a girl.”
Play Like A Girl is a female-empowering space where women, or people identifying as women, of all ages and backgrounds are invited to play music, express their creativity, connect, and collaborate. The collective organises a monthly showcase at the Echo, celebrating the best female acts in town, accompanied by a zine featuring artwork, photography, and writing from different local women.
And that’s not all. PLAG has their own production company, PLAG Records, which is going to release albums from Psychic Love (Lisa Peters’ band) and Iris, an alternative band with a front woman that performed at the June Installation Series.
Recor and the team plan to grow their ventures with educational talks about the ins and outs of the music industry, implement PLAG events all over the US (and possibly the world!), and create a networking base for women in music to facilitate communication and collaboration. Also, the team is visualising a partnership with other female collectives in the likes of FYF, but with predominantly female acts. A new, improved version of the Lilith Fair for Millennials maybe?
The music industry can be highly competitive, unforgiving and discouraging for a variety of artists that don’t fit the bill, let alone women. PLAG can provide inspiration for other female collectives especially in countries where stereotyping and sexism is even more rampant. To learn more, check out PLAG’s website, or find them on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
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