When this interview was recorded in 1983, many thought that Joan Jett had achieved rock stardom through puppetry. Her all-girl teenage punk band, The Runaways, was considered to be the money-making gimmick of industry man Kim Fowley, and many believed her manager and songwriting partner, Kenny Laguna, was pulling the strings to her solo career.
Perhaps as a response to this general view, Jett paints a very different picture here, stressing to Lisa Robinson and the radio audience that she had always done things her own way. And while the absence of eloquence could be used as evidence for either side of the debate, her stories of career struggles, her reports of rigorous touring, her insistence on not being in it for the money, and her apparent love of rock n' roll (sorry) all speak to a do-it-yourself, hard-working mentality.
00:00 - Avoiding boredom on tour
01:11 - Writing more complex songs / "learning" slide guitar
02:16 - Catching up on sleep / being tested
03:43 - Original reaction to The Runaways / hypothetical current reaction
04:56 - Dismissing the rumors of Kim Fowley's role with The Runaways
05:39 - "I Love Rock N' Roll" / British television / The Arrows
07:10 - Difficulty in obtaining a record deal
07:48 - A warning for the music industry / how much power the fans have
09:13 - Playing in East Germany for kids starved for rock n' roll
11:05 - Misconception of Joan as a puppet: Kenny Laguna, importance of the Blackhearts
13:09 - The new record (Album)
13:46 - Growth heard in the new album due to incessant gigging
14:35 - The perks of admitting mistakes on stage
15:12 - Maturation through discerning who's out to take advantage of you
16:07 - Wearing glitter to elementary school
16:42 - Not being a "freak;" not being "normal"
17:54 - Potential for making a movie in the future
19:35 - The Baltimore Orioles
19:57 - Making and spending a lot of money / building a fan base in Europe
21:37 - Not having time to spend money
22:32 - Attempting to learn German and why
23:57 - How the Blackhearts approach ballads
25:09 - Challenges that she faces / slide guitar / rhythm guitarists being overlooked
27:23 - Avoiding depression
28:38 - Kenny Laguna helping to build her confidence
30:30 - Still getting nervous
31:14 - Being hated at some shows
31:35 - (Not) receiving credit for breaking barriers for women in rock / her guitar sound.