May 26, 2015 The First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic: Jessica Hopper book signing at Skylight Books
I sort of remember how I met Jessica Hopper. In the mid 2000s, she was doing PR for a bunch of cool bands while I was editing a magazine. We corresponded and collaborated, and during a trip to Chicago I even visited the compound run by her and her friend Joan and had lunch with them. All the while, she had a not-so-secret life as a zine maker and writer. I loved her Hit It or Quit It! publication and looked forward to her contributions to Punk Planet. How awkward was it to send clippings to someone like that?
Nowadays Jessica edits for outlets that are as respected and influential as they are huge, Rookie and Pitchfork, and a collection of her music-related essays was recently published by Featherproof Books. So there was no way I could miss last week’s reading, conversation, and signing of The First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic at Skylight Books.
All the seats were already full in the Los Feliz bookshop by the time I arrived, so I stood in the corner right in front. It was appropriate since that’s where I prefer to stand at concerts. There, I could observe the interaction between the fearless-Chicago-writer-turned-affable-reader and the audience that included fans, friends, freelancers, and music lovers from both digital and analog walks of life.
The first piece read was “I Have a Strange Relationship with Music.” That Jessica would write such a cerebral and revealing essay inspired by a Van Morrison record and print it in her self-published zine hinted at her being unchained to the punk genre and demonstrated a willingness to push her craft beyond the comfort zones and that limited most of her fellow zine writers–including me. That was back in 2002.
She followed up with a more recent trashing of Miley Cyrus written on behalf of SPIN magazine and an unpublished paper that she read for the Experience Music Project titled “Louder Than Love: My Teen Grunge Poserdom.” They were highly entertaining while expanding upon cultural context and making fun of personal foibles, respectively. Jessica can go either way comfortably, deeply, and well.
During the discussion led by Molly Lambert that followed, there was ample talk about feminism in popular culture. The Riot Grrrl participant was asked what female artists young women should look out for and instead of reeling off a list of heroes, friends, and next big things, she simply responded “all of them.” I love that Jessica is still fueled by her punk, feminist, and zine roots without allowing that to limit her scope, audience, or impact on popular culture.
There was some unsavory stuff, too. The Chicago-based writer touched on her R. Kelly piece, instigated when she was called out by reporter Jim Derogatis for dancing during the singer’s performance at the Pitchfork Music Festival. He was the journalist who has practically single-handedly documented Kelly’s predatory behavior toward underage girls; she was a Pitchfork writer that he challenged. Jessica went on to interview him for the Village Voice in 2013 and become a supporter of his cause.
I think it’s that piece that puts the book in proper context. Yes, popular music is entertainment. It can be uplifting. It can be inspiring. It can be cool. But it is also culture that can and should be measured, considered, and pondered. And Jessica is unafraid to do any of that.
When it was my turn to have Jessica sign a fancy first-edition paperback with gilded edges, I told her how thrilled I was that she came from zines and had a book of essays out. It’s awesome and it makes me want to be a better writer. Her response was that she appreciated me sacrificing dinnertime with my family on a school night! Well, we all do our part.
Check out The First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic via Featherproof Books and follow Jessica at tinyluckygenius.tumblr.com. Follow Imprint on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, too.