In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with two-time Grammy winning singer songwriter Janis Ian about her Facebook posting that went viral with over 12 million views, 50K comments and over 93K shares addressing the Trump Administration. Legendary singer, writer and feminist icon Ian was only 14 when she wrote "Society's Child" observing the racial bigotry and atrocities during the 1960’s. Her civil rights stand brought her controversy and even death threats, however the importance of the song was recognized when it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Janis remains society's child, although an older and wiser one with her commentary on current American history and our new president's positions. We talked to Janis about what inspired her to write this must-read post (see link below) and her spin on our LGBT civil rights.
When asked how she sees our LGBTQ community moving forward in a Trump administration Ian stated, “Well, I think the question for anyone in the LGBT community is can we move forward in this administration? This is an administration that is on record saying that we are crazy, that we’re mentally disturbed, that we need therapy to become ‘normal’. This is an administration that seeks to normalize hatred and bigotry and ignorance. My gosh if they’re normalizing anything it’s ignorance. They have the arrogance of their ignorance. So I don’t know that we can move forward. I hope we can but I think we’ll be doing very well if we can just manage to maintain at this point and I would say that goes across the board, not just for gay people but for the disabled, for anyone that dissents on either side and for anyone that is not white male and wealthy. I think the coalminers are going to get hit too. You know we’re not alone in this, it’s just that a lot of people don’t realize it yet.”
Janis Ian won her first Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1976 for “At Seventeen” and her second Grammy Award in 2013 at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony for Best Spoken Word Album for her audio book "Society's Child”. She had stiff competition in 2013 including President Bill Clinton, First Lady Michelle Obama, Rachel Maddow and Ellen DeGeneres. When she won she sincerely considered it to be a “stunning upset.” With her inimitable sense of humor, she went on to say "There must be a joke in here somewhere. An ex-president, a First Lady and three lesbians go into a bar..." In addition to the Grammy the audio version also received an Audie Award, the audio book industry’s version of the Grammys. As a multitalented artist Janis has been expressing her life experience through her music, songs and her literary projects. Ian’s songs have been recorded by singers as diverse as Cher, John Mellencamp, Celine Dion, Nana Mouskouri, Charlie Daniels and Roberta Flack and she has performed with Tom Paxton, Lou Gossett Jr., Judy Collins, Phil Ochs and a host of other singer-songwriters. Read Viral Facebook Post...
For More Info: janisian.com
1 comment:
Janis is a clear and constant voice for any era, any age. She is a poet, dreamer & realist all at this same time. I love her.
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