As seen in Guitar Girl Magazine Issue 20 – summer 2022
The 10th Annual She Rocks Awards honoring women in the music and audio industries was held at The Ranch in Anaheim, California, on June 2, 2022. Spearheading the event was the founder of the Women’s International Music Network, Laura B. Whitmore. Co-hosting this year’s special evening celebrating their 10-year anniversary were AXS TV host Katie Daryl and saxophonist Mindi Abair who was filling in for rock icon Lzzy Hale as she had to cancel at the last minute as one of her band members came down with COVID. Abair jokingly said she was filling “Lzzy’s amazingly tall, amazing shoes!”
The evening consisted of virtual and in-person events and started with a red carpet-walk, followed by an evening of music and laughter.
Country music artist Tenille Arts (sponsored by PRS Guitars) was the opening act and she performed playing her “bedazzled” PRS acoustic guitar on hits “That’s My Friend You’re Talkin’ About,” “Wide Open Spaces,” and the first song written and produced by an all-female team to reach No. 1 on the Mediabase/Country Aircheck chart, “Somebody Like That.” Other performances for the evening were performed by the house band made up of the The Command Sisters with drummer Christina Torres and the honorees listed below.
The 2022 She Rocks Awards recipients included:
- Dionne Warwick — Legend Award – Six-time GRAMMY® and Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, multi-platinum iconic singer, actress, television host, former UN Goodwill Ambassador and interior designer with her own WG Design Lab
- Dionne Warwick was, unfortunately, unable to attend but accepted her award via video and stated, “I wanna say how exceptionally proud and excited I am to know that you found me worthy to receive this particular award from She Rocks. I know you’re all gonna have a wonderful evening and I do hope you will accept my apology for not being with you and know how much I do appreciate being honored by you.”
- Meredith Brooks – Trailblazer Award Singer-songwriter and guitarist celebrating the 25th anniversary of her single ”Bitch”
- On accepting her award, Brooks shared with the audience how she began her career and became an overnight success. She ended by saying, “Now there’s a whole new generation of creative, amazing, amazing young women. I know there’s one in back of me here and all these beautiful women on stage that are coming through the business right now. And a lot of ’em are actually in this room. . . . What can we continue to do to blaze the trail for them? It’s coming to events like the She Rocks Awards and supporting the Women’s International Music Network. So what I’m gonna continue to do, and what I’ve really grown to love to do is champion the artists I see that are invested in themselves, serve in their sacred circle, and share my experiences and my resources.” Brooks took the stage, closing out the show by singing her award-winning song and bringing down the house!
- Carmen Vandenberg —Bold Star Award – Lead guitarist and one half of the GRAMMY®-nominated rock duo BONES UK
- “I’d like to thank the She Rocks Awards for existing, for putting a spotlight on all these incredible women in the industry, reminding us of our worth and connecting us. It’s changes in progress like this that will make a difference in history and propel women to the level of respect they deserve.” Vandenberg then performed her original single “Marionette” with Samantha Maloney on drums, Jennifer Oberle on bass, and Lyle XXXXX on keys.
- MILCK — Vision Award– Singer-songwriter, leading advocate for women’s rights and celebrated role model within the music industry
- “It’s been shown also that educated women invest more into their communities than our, than the other gender. So we are a great inspiration to our male counterparts, right? We can show the way in how we can invest in our communities. And so, this is a good sign of just like, you know, keep going and keep healing oneself. If we can fight for our lives and know how to fight for our dreams side by side, with learning how to fight for others, it’s just a beautiful dance between self-discovery of the me and the we.” MILCK performed the single “Metamorphosis” on piano.
- Yvette Young — Inspire Award – Guitarist and front-woman for the math rock band Covet
- After speaking about attending a previous She Rocks Awards event and being “galvanized and uplifted” after seeing speakers and performers like Lzzy Hale, Jennifer Batten, Esperanza Spalding, and Nita Strauss, Young said it was those women and many others who have “paved the way for people like me to have a platform and to be able to feel safer doing what I love and not have it be like surprising or frowned upon for a minority woman, especially in my genre, is a total privilege and blessing.” Young went on to put on an amazing performance of her single “Firebird.”
- EveAnna Manley — Mad Skills Award – President, Manley Laboratories aka “The Tube Chick”
- “Today, I hope to become an inspiration for young girls everywhere to get into the geeky world of electronics. So don’t allow other people to define who you are, you know, you get to write your own story, and you get to become that boss lady in charge.”
- Sherri Chung -— Spirit Award Award-winning film and TV composer and Governor of the Music Branch of the Television Academy
- “I actually believe that music does not have a gender, but those of us who create it do, and we are here. We are celebrating the creator. We are celebrating the woman, every woman who took a chance, who came with a point of view, who rose above every voice that said no, and went ahead and did it anyway. Yeah, I am proud. I am proud to be here celebrating the creators of music, celebrating women. Chung performed her original single “Kangaroo” on piano.
- Leslie Gaston-Bird — Champion Award– Mixer, sound editor, author and a champion of diversity in the audio industry
- “. . . women in audio are everywhere. So let’s lift them up and make these women visible. Let’s create role models for our young girls. Let’s build networks and mentor and keep changing this industry so that we can thrive and so that we can succeed. And we all have the right to make a living doing what we love. And my biggest hope is that one day, maybe we won’t have to fight for that privilege.
- Lyndsey Parker – Dreaming Out Loud Yahoo Entertainment Music Editor, SiriusXM host and author
- Parker has been the co-host of the She Rocks Awards for the last several years, so on receiving this year’s Dreaming Out Loud award, she states, “Obviously, I’m usually the one giving out these awards, not getting them, and I freely admit that being on the receiving end is a lot more nerve-wracking. To be in the esteemed company of the brilliant badass women like tonight’s other honorees has put me at an extremely rare loss for words.” She added, “Thanks to Laura, Bonnie, and everyone at Women’s International Music Network for having me be part of the family. I will cherish this award forever. You all rock, and I am truly honored to rock among you.”
- Kerry Fiero — Motivator Award – Former artist manager and creator of the Girl Power! Women Working in the Music Industry Conference
- “I’m honored to be in the company of so many fierce women and to be honored here tonight. When my journey began as a personal manager, I often felt like the only woman in the room. Like all women, I faced my share of challenges working in a male-dominated industry. I quickly learned that professionalism, hard work, and focus were the best ways to be seen, heard, and respected.”
- Julie Robbins — Powerhouse Award – CEO of effects pedal manufacturer EarthQuaker Devices
- “As I reflect back on the last ten years, I can remember how I felt realizing that I entered a male-dominated industry with very few women represented at every level. I would flip through magazines and be disappointed by what I saw. I didn’t see women depicted in ways that were respectful to their talents without overly sexualizing them. I’ve worked with my team to establish values that respect and include women, people of color, and the LGBTQ community. We live by our values and hope to inspire others to follow in our footsteps.”Every year, Whitmore gives a “secret” award and this year’s recipient was Myki Angeline for the Warrior Award — a much-deserved award!
- “It’s important that we speak up and we represent. We are who we are just by being here. All of us here, we’re being the representation for the ones that are younger to go on, and we prove that it can be done.”
Congratulations to this year’s recipients!
To see the She Rocks Awards show, visit the She Rocks YouTube channel. For more information on She Rocks and the Women’s International Music Network, visit thewimn.com.
- “As I reflect back on the last ten years, I can remember how I felt realizing that I entered a male-dominated industry with very few women represented at every level. I would flip through magazines and be disappointed by what I saw. I didn’t see women depicted in ways that were respectful to their talents without overly sexualizing them. I’ve worked with my team to establish values that respect and include women, people of color, and the LGBTQ community. We live by our values and hope to inspire others to follow in our footsteps.”Every year, Whitmore gives a “secret” award and this year’s recipient was Myki Angeline for the Warrior Award — a much-deserved award!