Joan Jett is an American musician. She became a female pioneer in the male-dominated world of rock music while frontwoman for The Runaways.
Jett got her first guitar when she was 14 and quit lessons after her teacher would only teach her folk songs since that was all that was deemed appropriate for a girl. She formed her first serious band when she was 15. The Runaways were Jett on guitar and vocals; Sandy West on drums; Cherie Currie on lead vocals; Jackie Fox on bass guitar; and Lita Ford on guitar. Their hard-rock sound was at odd with the disco music popular at the time and their young age and gender lead to them being dismissed by audiences and critics alike. No one knew how to deal with five girls singing about sex, rebellion and partying. They had their own unique style, with Currie often wearing lingerie on stage and Jett in a trademark red, leather jumpsuit.
The Runaways released their first self-titled album in 1976 and the song “Cherry Bomb” became a punk hit. The following year they released Queens of Noise, which featured “Born to Be Bad” and “Neon Angels.” Although the album didn’t do well in the U.S. they received three gold records in Japan. Currie and Fox left in mid-1977 and Jett took over the lead singer duties. The band released two more albums before being dropped by their record label and ultimately breaking up.
Jett decided to go solo and spent time in England with Paul Cook and Steve Jones, former members of the Sex Pistols. They recorded three tracks including a cover of “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll”. On her return to Los Angeles she tried to get a record label to distribute her new album but was rejected by 23 companies. She founded Blackheart Records in 1980 with Kenny Laguna, a songwriter and producer she had met while making the film “We’re All Crazee Now!” which dealt with the story of The Runaways. Jett became the first female artist to own and have direct control over an independent record company.
Jett and Laguna initially printed and distributed her self-titled debut album themselves, selling copies at Jett’s shows. Later it was picked up by Boardwalk Records and re-released as Bad Reputation. Her second album “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll”, now with a band called “The Blackhearts” backing her. The album became a huge hit, the title track, “Crimson and Clover” and Gary Glitter’s “Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah)” all became hit songs.
In the 1990’s the Riot Grrrl movement began, with Bikini Kill creditors as the originators of the sound and aesthetic associated with it. Many of the women involved in Riot Grrrl credited Jett as a role model and inspiration. Jett was named “the Godmother of Punk” and the “Original Riot Grrrl” in the press. She worked as a producer with other groups like Bikini Kill and L7 as well as other female-led rock bands that had been inspired by her and the punk-glam rock sound of The Runaways.
In 2010 ‘The Runaways’, a film based on Cherie Currie’s book ‘Neon Angel: A Memoir of a Runaway’ was released. Jett was an executive producer on the project and helped actress Kristen Stewart to accurately portray her on screen.