I have always loved older music, ever since I was a little kid. While most kids were listening to Today’s Hits, I preferred to listen to the hits from the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s. After celebrating Women’s History Month in March, it made me reflect on the many amazing ladies we have had in the music industry who broke records, rewrote the narrative, and paved the way for girls in music today. Music wouldn’t be the same without heroic women in music, and in honor of Women’s History Month, I’m here to talk about some of my favorite ladies in music from my favorite decades.
Linda mccARTNEY
Linda McCartney, wife of Paul McCartney and co-founder of Wings is, in my opinion, one of the most underrated women in rock and roll history. Not only was she the keyboardist and supporting vocalist for the band, but she was also an amazing photographer, capturing photos of the most popular entertainers of the ’60s in their element –Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Janis Joplin, Simon and Garfunkel, Otis Redding, The Grateful Dead, The Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys, The Doors and of course, The Beatles, just to name a few.
Her main muse was her husband Paul and The Beatles. She captured photos of the Fab Four throughout their music journey and shared an inside look of the band that no one had ever seen before. She showed the world many different sides of The Beatles, and even captured photos of them before walking their iconic album cover for Abbey Road (many of the photographs she captured can be found on her Instagram account, definitely check it out).
She co-wrote some of Wings greatest hits such as “Silly Love Songs” and was Paul’s right-hand-woman. She was a musician, pianist, author and activist for animal-rights. Her and her husband dedicated their lives to animal welfare, advocating for vegetarianism and speaking out against animal testing and cruelty in the mid-’70s.
My dream job has always been to be a photographer for a rock band and looking back at it now, I think it’s safe to say I just want to be Linda McCartney when I grow up.
jANIS jOPLIN
Janis Joplin’s raw and powerful voice made her one of the ’60s first female rock stars. With hits like “Piece of My Heart” and “Me and Bobby McGee”, she showed her unique music style with the loud projection of her voice, making her an absolute powerhouse and force to be reckoned with.
She really embodied the free-spirit of hippies at the time and was always trying to break the status quo with her song styles and the powerful messages she conveyed through her music. Joplin blurred the lines of rock and roll and the blues, creating a genre of music no one else had created, notably no other woman.
One of my favorite things about Joplin was her unique outfits, often made up of vibrant colors, big feather boas, no shoes, and all accompanied by a big pair of glasses. There was no one like her at the time and no one like her now, she truly was a one of a kind.
Although her life was short and she is one of the members of the 27 Club – accompanied by members like Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain and Amy Winehouse –, she made her time on earth count and accomplished more than some artists ever would.
dEBBIE Harry, blondie
Debbie Harry, better known as Blondie, wrote some of the biggest hits of the ’80s. With songs like “One Way or Another,” “Call Me” and “The Tide is High,” she was taking over the music scene.
One of Blondie’s number one hits, “Rapture”, made history by being the first rap music video to air on MTV. Rap was just coming to be and wasn’t very popular at this time, until Blondie released this hit song. Blondie saw this new genre and created “Rapture”, changing history forever. This brought rap into the spotlight and led to the genre being mainstream, which is truly amazing as the genre is now one of the biggest in the music industry. It’s safe to say that Debbie Harry helped the popularity of rap music, which is pretty cool that a woman had the power to do that.
Blondie has been one of my favorite artists since a young age, and I was fortunate enough to see her in Colorado at a music festival in 2018. At the time, she was 72, but you wouldn’t have guessed it. Her voice was still strong and she had the full attention of the crowd with her stage presence, just like when she was in her twenties.
Blondie has been in the music industry for nearly 50 years and is still writing music and touring alongside some of her original bandmates. She paved the way for many of today’s female musicians, including Miley Cyrus who covered her song “Heart of Glass” in 2020. She is a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and is a true icon of the ’80s music scene.
CAROLe KING
Carole King was the music writing queen of the ’60s and ’70s. She wrote some of the decades’ greatest hits, but you may not realize that she wrote them, as many of them were written for other artists. She wrote for James Taylor, The Everly Brothers, The Monkees, The Drifters and The Animals, just to name a few. She even wrote Little Eva’s hit song “Locomotion” from 1962.
Her most notable song is “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” famously sung by Aretha Franklin, which reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100, was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999, and became one of Franklin’s signature songs. I couldn’t imagine anyone but Franklin singing the song, but a lot of the praise should go to King, who was able to write one of the most powerful and influential songs of the 20th century.
King was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2021 where Taylor Swift performed and presented the award, with Swift stating in her speech that Carole King is the greatest songwriter of all time. The fact that one of the most celebrated and notable female artists of today’s music worships King, goes to show just how much of an impact she had on the industry.
Carole King deserves all the praise and more as she really is one of the greatest songwriters in rock and roll history.
Stevie Nicks
Fleetwood Mac is one of the most famous groups in rock and roll history. They formed in the late ’60s, but Stevie Nicks, one of the group’s lead singers, didn’t join until 1975, which is when the band soared to the top of the charts. Some of the band’s most popular songs have Nicks singing lead vocals, like “Dreams” and “Landslide.” It’s hard to imagine the group without her, but there was a time when there wasn’t. Nicks unique and free spirit demeanor really is what made Fleetwood Mac the band everyone knows and loves.
Fleetwood Mac wouldn’t be what they were without Nicks and she changed the group for the better. Her carefree persona makes her an amazing entertainer, especially when she’s on stage… that girl can play a mean tambourine.
I saw her in Kansas City in 2023 when she toured with Billy Joel. She was amazing and brought the heat (and that’s not just because she performed in the sweltering August sun). She paid tribute to her fellow bandmate Christine McVie who had passed away that year, as a gallery of photos played in the background while she sang “Landslide”. Even though the performance was a tear-jerker, it felt like a very empowering moment for all the women in the crowd as you could tell just how grateful Nicks was for the relationship she had with her dear friend. Thanks to the work that Nicks and McVie put into the band, you can feel true energy of girl-power through the songs they sing.
Tina turner
Tina Turner is simply “The Best” (pun intended). She started out her music career as a duo with Ike Turner, her husband at the time. They had a very successful career in the ‘60s and were both inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the ‘90s for their achievements.
Unfortunately, not all was extravagant for Tina during her time with Ike. Tina faced many hardships at the hand of her husband. Tina left Ike in the late ‘seventies ’70s when an altercation escalated and she fled, leaving her on her own. The fact that Tina was able to focus on herself and leave her toxic relationship is really heroic.
She then started releasing music on her own, where she had a very successful career with nine studio albums, tweleve Grammy Awards, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and three Grammy Hall of Fame inductions. When she was with her husband, the duo sold around 500,000 albums in their career. When Tina went on her own, she sold over 100 million albums, making her one of the best-selling female artists in music history.
With her powerful voice and stage persona, Tina Turner is a huge name in music. She was an entertainer through and through and overcame her hardships. She stood up for herself and focused on what was best for her, resulting in becoming a huge star.
cher
Cher was a fashion and music icon when she was in her 20’s. Now that she is approaching 80, it is safe to say she still fits both of those roles. Similar to Tina Turner, Cher started out in a musical duo with her husband Sonny Bono. The couple’s divorce was the end of their conjoined career, but it was just the beginning of Cher’s successful solo career. The musical duo sold 40 million records, but on her own, Cher has sold over 100 million records.
She started her own variety TV show in 1975 after the split from her husband, where she would host different actors and musical guests to perform with her. Many popular artists appeared on her show including Elton John, The Jackson 5, Carol Burnett and Steve Martin. While guests would change each episode, one thing stayed the same, and that was Cher’s fabulous outfits and amazing performances. For every show, Cher would wear the most gorgeous and extravagant outfit. Whether it was a bedazzled jumpsuit, feathered dress or matching set, she killed the fashion game.
Not only is Cher a successful name in the music and fashion industry, but she also became a famous actress and starred in many movies. Her multiple talents are inspiring and show that women can do anything they put their hearts to and don’t have to be tied down to one thing.
The runaways
The Runaways were one of the first ever all female rock groups that consisted of five, young hardcore rockers. The members were Sandy West, Lita Ford, Jackie Fox, Cherie Currie and Joan Jett. The Runaways introduced us to Jett who went on to have a successful solo career with hits like “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll”, “I Hate Myself for Loving You” and “Bad Reputation”. The group of girls were only sixteen and seventeen when they started the band, but rocked as if they had been in the industry for years.
Although the girls were very young, they wrote songs with provocative lyrics such as, “Make me tremble make me shake /Pleasin’ each other rockin’ till daybreak” and “I’m sweet sixteen, a rebel queen/ And I look real hot in my tight blue jeans.” These raunchy lyrics lead to people forgetting their young age and thinking they were much older. These teens really knew how to rock, and you can tell from watching them perform that they put their blood, sweat, and tears, into every performance.
At the time, rock and roll was a male dominated genre, but these groups of young girls showed that women can rock out just as hard as men, if not harder, no matter the age.
big mama thornton
I must admit, I wasn’t familiar with who Big Mama Thornton was until I was watching the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2024. This induction ceremony is one of my favorite things as it brings together some of the biggest artists from the past and present to recognize those who have made music history. Big Mama Thornton was inducted that year and was recognized for her musical influence.
Many people know Elvis Presley’s hit song “Hound Dog,” but don’t realize that the song was originally written and performed by Big Mama Thornton. She also wrote “Ball and Chain” which was made famous by Janis Joplin (Thornton was one of Joplin’s biggest inspirations and led to her interest in tying blues and rock and roll together).
Big Mama Thornton inspired some of the biggest names in music history and was the first to create a hybrid of rhythm and blues with rock ‘n’ roll. Give her version of “Hound Dog” a listen, I think it’s even better than the king’s.
dolly parton
Dolly Parton is an absolute cowgirl all-star. Even if you’re not too familiar with her music, you are sure to be familiar with Dolly in another way. Whether you know her from her various clothing and baking lines, her world famous Dollywood amusement park, or even because she was Hannah Montana’s godmother, Dolly has made an impact in many different industries. She has become such an inspiration for women that it has resulted in the motto, “What would Dolly do?” when faced with a decision.
One of my favorite things about Dolly is that she wrote one of her most famous songs, “9 to 5” on her acrylic nails… yes her nails! When she was writing the song, she found a rhythm she liked by scratching her nails together and used it for the melody. She even credited them on the song for the album (they are credited under “Nails by Dolly”).
As a woman, I think this is super cool and unique to take something common for women to have and turn it into something extraordinary.
Parton is a woman of many trades as she is an actress, songwriter and philanthropist. Parton was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022 because of the amazing impact she made on the music industry.
These are just a few of the many amazing women in music history who have paved the way for female artists today. Women have and always will be a force to be reckoned with in the music industry, rock on ladies!