The moment Joan Jett realised she had truly “made it”
Unlike many musicians of her time, Joan Jett blazed a trail as a musical pioneer at just 16 when she co-founded The Runaways. The band found success in the mid-1970s, opening for acts like Talking Heads and releasing their self-titled debut album in 1976. However, it was her collaboration with The Blackhearts and the release of the 1981 album I Love Rock ‘n Roll that truly established her as a rock ‘n’ roll legend.
Throughout her career, Jett undeniably broke barriers for numerous aspiring female musicians by achieving success in a predominantly male-dominated music industry, showcasing that young women could also rise to rockstar status. As a member of one of the earliest all-female rock bands, she played a pivotal role in shaping the feminist punk movement and later collaborated with bands like Bikini Kill and L7.
“For guitar-playing girls – this is important – don’t listen to what people tell you,” Jett told The Guardian, reflecting on the misogyny that female musicians often face. She added: “You may run into people asking you what you’re doing, saying that girls don’t play guitar. You’d think we’d be way past that now – it’s been 30 years since I played in the Runaways – but that’s not the case. […] Just screw all that and keep at it.”
Several of Jett’s biggest hits can be discovered on the seminal album I Love Rock ‘n Roll, including ‘Victim of Circumstance’ and of course the title track. The latter, in particular, provided a rather significant moment for the musician, who regarded it as one of her most pivotal career moments. When asked about this as part of Reddit’s ‘Ask Me Anything’, she said hearing the song on the radio for the first time meant a lot.
She explained: “Knowing that the momentum was moving forward was big, and then when it hit number one… I did not know that I had ever felt that I had made it. Because once you make it once, you have to make it again. I would have to prove it every time. We were indie and forced to be indie, we wanted to sign with a big label but nobody wanted me, I kept all the letters so we have proof, all 23 majors and minors heard them and everybody passed.”
Continuing, Jett added: “So we were forced to be our own label, and Kenny Laguna took $500 out of his child’s future college money to print out a hundred vinyl records of ‘Bad Reputation’ and we sold them out of the trunk of the car. And that was our first Blackheart record. But when ‘I Love Rock ‘n Roll’ hit number one, that would have to be my moment, because we did this with our own blood, sweat and tears.”
Regarding ‘Bad Reputation’, Jett considers it to be one of her favourite songs ever recorded. This appeared a little earlier than ‘I Love Rock ‘n Roll’ in 1980 and has since become one of her iconic songs. It has also been extensively featured in popular culture, notably serving as the opening theme for the cult television series Freaks and Geeks.
