Although Riot Grrrl appeared in the early '90s, a version of their philosophy can be traced back to several late '70s to mid-'80s female punk and rock musicians including: Siouxsie Sioux, Poly Styrene, Patti Smith, Kim Gordon, Chrissie Hynde as well as many others. Aside from these bands, there were also several media outlets that influenced their ideology. In 1988,
Sassy magazine, a magazine aimed at teenage girls that discussed controversial subject matter, formed. (An issue of the magazine is pictured to the right.) A 1989 article entitled "Women, sex and rock and roll" that appeared in an issue of
Puncture became Riot Grrrl's first manifesto. And in 1991, a radio show called
Your Dream Girl that discussed women's role in modern society debuted in Olympia, Washington, what's considered to be the pioneering city of riot grrrl.
This realm of thinking set the mood for what later became known as riot grrrl. However, it wasn't until later in 1991 when young feminist women came together as a reaction to the Christian Coalition's Right to Life attack on abortion and the Senate Judiciary Hearings of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas (in which Anita Hill was publicly mocked for accusing Thomas of sexually assaulting her) that the need for riot grrrl became increasingly apparent.
In a letter discussing the reaction to the Christian Coalition and Judiciary Hearings, Jen Smith wrote to Allison Wolfe (both of Bratmobile) "this summer's going to be a girl riot." While the exact wording of the this text is debated, the overall message remains the same. Soon after, Wolfe and Neuman worked together with Kathleen Hannah and Tobi Vai (of Bikini Kill), and they created a feminist zine called "Riot Grrrl." The women decided to remove the "i" in girl and triple the "r" sound as a way to make the name sound derogatory and angry. To the left is a photo of a Riot Grrrl zine.
Although there are several bands linked to the early formation of Riot Grrrl, Bikini Kill and Bratmobile are considered to be the most predominant. Bikini Kill formed in October of 1990 in Olympia, Washington by Kathleen Hannah (vocalist), Billy Karren (lead guitarist), Kathi Wilcox (bassist), and Tobi Vai (drummer). Hannah had been working as a stripper to put herself through school and, in her spare time, volunteered in a woman's shelter. During this time, she states she was exposed to a variety of people, and this prompted her to seek out and practice feminist ideology. One of the ways, she, along with the other female members of the band, practiced this ideology was by making their shows very female-friendly, often encouraging women to come to the front and sing along. Band members also handed out lyric sheets if audience members didn't know the lyrics. To the right is a picture of the band performing.
Aside from Bikini Kill, Bratmobile was another influential riot grrrl band. Bratmobile formed when Allison Wolfe and Molly Neuman were asked to play a show on Valentine's Day in 1991 alongside Bikini Kill. Although they had compiled a few original songs, they considered themselves a garage band, having never played a show. However, they accepted the offer as a dare and ended up playing the show with both members switching off on guitar, vocals and drums. Soon after, Jen Smith and Christina Billotte acted as fill-in guitar members, until Erin Smith came in as their permanent guitarist. To the right is a photo of the band.
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