Nobody Ever Asked Me about the Girls
Women, Music and Fame
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ISBN10: 1250813875
ISBN13: 9781250813879
Trade Paperback
272 Pages
$18.00
CA$24.50
Over four decades, Lisa Robinson has made a name for herself as a celebrated journalist in a business long known for its boys’ club mentality. But to Robinson, the female performers who sat down with her, most often at the peak of their careers, were the true revelations.
Based on conversations with more than forty female artists, Nobody Ever Asked Me about the Girls is a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the effects of success on some of music’s most famous women. From Tina Turner, Joni Mitchell, Stevie Nicks, Donna Summer, Bette Midler, Alanis Morissette and Linda Ronstadt to Mary J. Blige, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, Adele, Beyoncé, Rihanna, and numerous others, Robinson reveals the private obsessions and public distractions that musicians contend with in their pursuit of stardom. From these interviews emerge candid portraits of how these women—regardless of genre or decade—deal with image, abuse, love, motherhood, family, sex, drugs, business, and age.
Complete with reflections from Robinson’s own career as a pioneering female music writer, Nobody Ever Asked Me about the Girls offers an overdue consideration of how hopes, dreams, and the drive for recognition have propelled our most beloved female musicians to take the stage and leave an undeniable, lasting musical mark on the world.
Reviews
Praise for Nobody Ever Asked Me about the Girls
“An oral history on the maddening sexism that has animated the music business since, well, forever . . . Acerbic and authoritative.”—The New York Times Book Review
"[Robinson is] a relatable, wise-up observer . . . making her new book an indispensable document about the feminine journey through a man's world . . . A rarity in pop-rock journalism, and Robinson is a rare resource."—USA Today
“Part music history, part social history, and no part minced words . . . It’s hard to imagine [another rock journalist] as winningly blunt, unpretentious, and on-target as Robinson.”—Shelf Awareness
"A panoramic view of women rockers . . . Whether you are tuned in to the history of rock or a casual fan, this book has something to offer. [The interviews] Robinson has gathered over the years are surprising and intimate, bringing figures like Lady Gage, Alanis Morrisette and Bette Midler to life."—BookPage
“In this fascinating, opinionated, and often insightful look back at her career, Robinson reflects on the deep-seated misogyny, sexism, and ageism in the music industry.”—Booklist (starred review)
"Passionate, insightful . . . Robinson inserts observations about the artists she admires [and] keeps things moving with her sharp takes and witty asides . . . This entertaining highlight reel of music interviews crackles with energy."—Publishers Weekly
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HOPES, DREAMS & AMBITIONS
“Can I tell you how many lives Life magazine ruined?” Bette Midler said to me in 2018 about the weekly picture magazine that was always in her house—and in millions of others’—when she was...
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Lisa Robinson
