But it isn’t rebellious to be a woman in music, is it?
For a while though, it felt that way. And sometimes, it still does. From indie’s Libertine 00s to today’s Huarache House Boys, there’s a prurient strain of ‘broism’ in many music spaces that hangs in the air like the cheap smell of Lynx.
Too many times have I heard female performers enduring cries of ‘get your tits out’ or been told of headlining DJs mistaken for groupies or suffered myself at the hands of taunting roadies, who couldn’t wrap their heads around the fact a girl was there to interview the band.
Things have to change. And TYCI, Glasgow’s female collective, founded by Amanda Aitken and Lauren Mayberry (of CHVRCHES) intend to help change them.
Offering a supportive platform and safe space to help female musicians play and promote their music – they’re celebrating and encouraging a previously silenced side of the Glasgow music scene.
Their gigs are ramshackle, joyous affairs – promoted with charmingly scrawled posters and populated by some of the most colourful, exciting performers out there.
And their empire is expanding, branching out into podcasts, print zines and a thoughtfully curated website, with a diverse and growing number of female contributors. Here they describe to Clash the what, the why and the women of TYCI.
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What inspired you to form TYCI? Was it reactionary (against the limitations of the current scene) or was it proactive (as a dedicated platform for the many wonderful female musicians in Glasgow and beyond)?
Lauren: A bit of both I think. I started TYCI in 2012 because it didn’t feel like the Glasgow music scene was overly supportive of female musicians, but also because I wished there were more platforms promoting female artists and providing a way for like-minded people to meet up. The response has been really positive and the vibe at our events is really great.
How do you operate? How many people are involved?
Lauren: There are a handful of us who run the collective on a day-to-day basis, and then we have volunteers based around the world who submit content for the website. What started as a live event series evolved into a website, zine, podcast and radio show, and we’re always looking for new ways to communicate and connect with people. TYCI is completely run by volunteers so everyone is just giving up whatever time they can to help out.
Is TYCI a feminine collective, or a feminist one? Do you have a manifesto or a mission statement?
Amanda: Right now we simply define TYCI as a collective run by women who care about things. As Lauren mentioned already, the collective has expanded naturally over the years into a much broader multi-platformed outlet to discuss subjects we care about. I see TYCI as much a place for celebrating as it is a platform to encourage all women to profile their own creativity too. To celebrate the art they love, discuss the issues they care about, and to offer a place to profile the work they are also doing.
Have you encountered any criticism or retaliation?
Lauren: There are sometimes discussions on our socials about certain articles we post but I think it’s important to get as many different perspectives on things as possible and always be trying to learn and improve. The moment you think you know everything and have nothing more to learn is a worrying one. We are also really keen to make TYCI as diverse as possible so are always looking for new writers from different backgrounds to help the collective feel representative and open.
You present a real stage for female writers, musicians and artists. Any favourite discoveries?
Lauren: I found out about SOAK when I was looking for artists to put on our podcasts. The TYCI podcast music hunt helps us find out about lots of new artists which is always great.
Amanda: Oh there’s so many. I would say Brooklyn artist eskimeaux and also Stockholm’s Zhala too have been personal highlights that i’ve discovered whilst looking for new music to put on the podcast. Oh and Lizzo! I think it was Lauren who discovered her but her song 'Let ‘Em Say' is my anthem.
We also ask people to send us suggestions from their local DIY scene to check out which is where we discovered rad bands like G.L.O.S.S and most recently this awesome solo artist, Sneaks. We’ve just started a book feature called Spine which is headed up by a new contributor, Laura Waddell. Laura works for a Glasgow publishing house and so got in touch with this idea and now I have an even bigger list of books I want to read and no time.
Which female musicians do you most admire? Past and present, please!
Lauren: So many. The ethos of Riot Grrrl has had a real impact on the work that TYCI does so we’re all big fans of Kathleen Hanna. We are all also huge Sleater-Kinney fans so were screaming internally whilst organising the Glasgow date of Carrie Brownstein’s book tour (November 13th, Glasgow Women’s Library). Sleater-Kinney also got us to do a Women’s Aid collection for them at their Glasgow show earlier this year. It was really amazing to meet a group of women who took the time to stand for something and try to put something good out into the world, when a lot of people don’t bother. And they were obviously incredible live.
Amanda: Riot Grrrl is most definitely seconded, but I also really admire blues singers like Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Memphis Minnie. These ladies wrote about their struggles and heartbreak so beautifully whilst totally shredding some of the earliest electric guitars in history. I would add Patti Smith to this list too. A few of us saw her live in Glasgow recently when she was touring Horses and it was like a massive tick off the musical bucket list for me. From reading her books and listening to interviews of her on podcasts, she just seems like a really interesting lady. It would be amazing to sit down with her over a pint and just ask all the questions.
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The work you promote spans many mediums and many countries. Is there something you haven’t done yet that you really want to do?
Amanda: I would love to see us do more projects that involve collaborating with other collectives or institutions that we admire both locally and around the world. We’ve worked with both Glasgow Film Theatre (where we screened the Scottish premiere of The Punk Singer) and Glasgow Women’s Library a couple of times now and it’s been so amazing to open up our following to theirs and vice versa.
Throughout October we collaborated with the Scottish Mental Health Arts and Film Festival (SMHAFF) whereby we ran a series called Illuminations. In it, we put a call out to the public to explore issues surrounding female mental health and wellbeing and we were totally overwhelmed by the response. We really wanted to give those dealing with mental illness a voice and assist in reducing the stigma surrounding mental health issues by opening up a discussion. It was really incredible to hear from such a variety of women’s experiences and for those who contributed to do so in a variety of mediums be it written, interviews, poetry, or illustration.
It would be great to do more things like this as I think it can be really easy to naturally fall into territories of who covers what, but it is important to keep discussions going. If you can work together for the wider greater good across a variety of platforms then you should where possible.
What inspires you to keep going forward?
Lauren: Finding people who believe in the same things that I do and want to make a difference, no matter how small, has been really inspiring for me, and very helpful. Finding a community that I feel a real part of has changed my outlook on a lot of things.
And what's next for TYCI?
Amanda: We are currently finalising plans for our Christmas party which is always fun. Also, we are finally planning get our podcasts on iTunes so that is super exciting. 2016 so far involves sitting down and reflecting on our previous year and what we’ve achieved whilst looking at what we want to achieve for the following year. I’m already excited about this because we all love admin and planning leads to more colour-coded spreadsheets which is something we can all get behind.
P.S. Can I join?
Amanda: Yes! We’re always looking for new contributors so please do!
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Words: Marianne Gallagher (Twitter)
For more information on TYCI check out their Facebook page // website.
