If there was any memoir we'd fight tooth and nail to secure, it would be the work of Kathleen Hanna. We'll soon get our chance. Announced on Instagram, Hanna unveiled the cover for her forthcoming autobiography Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk, which is set to land on bookshelves next year on May 14. The Bikini Kill singer and Le Tigre frontwoman occupies a special place in our hearts, as a pioneer of punk and the riot grrrl movement and for her tireless commitment to furthering the cause of feminism.
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Rebel Girl will chart Hanna's childhood, along with her college years in Olympia, Washington where she birthed her influential fanzine Bikini Kill and identically-named band with members drummer Tobi Vail and bassist Kathi Wilcox. The memoir promises insights into the riot grrrl movement, from its early heydey to its subsequent years of "exclusivity". Hanna writes about the dangers of touring during that period as a feminist; the crowd assaults and male rage. She also includes tidbits on fellow musicians on the scene, including her friendship with Kurt Cobain, Ian MacKaye, Joan Jett and her romance and marriage to Adam Horovitz, AKA Ad-Rock of the Beastie Boys. In the memoir, Hanna also gets candid about living with Lyme disease.
"It was a lot of work writing this book, I'm not going to say it was easy. I was a mess," shares Hanna on Instagram. "But it was also really awesome and I got to revisit a bunch of amazing, joyous moments where I lost my creativity and found it back."
Overall, Rebel Girl is billed as a must-read release for fans of punk and feminism. The memoir will be published by Ecco Press, an imprint of HarperCollins and is available for pre-order now.
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