It amazes me that anyone could ever say that Stevie Nicks is not a trailblazer for women. Stevie is absolutely a feminist icon. This is a woman who chose a career over a family or a husband. A woman who admits to having had abortions. A woman who is straight up about how many men have screwed her over, and admits to every last discrepancy and affair and addiction, and openly says she doesn't mind giving up romance or marriage or companionship for her job. How many people can say that unabashedly? And in addition to that, she didn't play the "girl singer role" women so often took on in those days. She partied as hard as the men did. She did just as many drugs. She had just as much sex. She was never a housewife type of woman and she never claimed to be. I'm not saying all of her choices were right, but she definitely paved the way for a lot of other female musicians to come into their own. She's a beautiful, sexy woman who dresses up in lace and velvet and chiffon and platforms, but is taken seriously by every man in the business. She earned that. She never sacrificed her femininity and confidence to be treated like a serious musician. She proved herself to be treated that way. C'mon guys, we all know the rest of the band is incredibly talented, some of which perhaps even moreso than Stevie. But Stevie Nicks is what made FM mainstream. Rhiannon was their very first hit, Dreams was their only #1 song, she's the only one of them to have a very successful solo career and be so totally well-known. And that's amazing for the woman who started off not even wanted in the band, and then was being considered as the 'little sister' of the band. For so long she was thought of as second class due to her sex, and probably due to her beauty and femininity and glamour. As mentioned, people like Janis were taken more seriously because in addition to the talent she undoubtedly had, she wasn't much one for glitz and rhinestones and girliness. And that made her 'one of the guys', and she was taken seriously. Stevie wasn't always. Reminds me of this interview:
High Times: What about [a relationship with] someone like Don Henley, who knows [what your lifestyle is like]? He's in the same position.
SN: When I was going out with Don, it was five years ago and I was much less busy. Fleetwood Mac was much less popular, we were just beginning. When I was with Lindsey, we lived together and were famous. It was the opposite extreme. I'll never forget the day I was up at Don's house having dinner with him and his manager, Irving Azoff, who is now my manager five years later, and Glenn Frey of the Eagles walked in and looked at me and said, "Spoiled yet," like no mention of Fleetwood Mac. I was not even in the league of a singer. I was nothing more than a girl. My claws went out and I wanted to get out of there.
High Times: I don't know him well, but that sounds typical of Glenn Frey.
SN: He's witchy! And I love Glenn and that was a long time ago. That was my first taste of what it was like to be a happening girl rock 'n roll singer and have people not relate to me like I even had a job. I went out with John David Souther for a while, who is cute and wonderful but very Texas and I found when I was with him, I didn't mention Fleetwood Mac ever. It didn't help my status with the man to bring up anything I did, so I didn't. And then you start saying, "But I work too. I'm happening. I write songs, but you aren't giving me a break."
I'm not saying Stevie was the only one who paved the way, she obviously was not. Janis and Grace Slick started it before her. Linda and Ann and Nancy were doing it at the same time that she was. People like Madonna and Cyndi Lauper continued after her. Some women don't even get much recognition for their trailblazing actions. Did you all know Cher was the first woman to show her belly button on tv, and was criticized for it by the public? Did you know the press and country fans everywhere slandered Dolly Parton in the late 70s for talking about her sexual experiences in her teenage years during an interview? Or that in 1968, long before country was ever female-friendly, she released a single called Just Because I'm a Woman, about how hypocritical it is for men to judge women on past sexual discrepancies, or whether they drink or smoke or whatever, when they all are guilty of the same? Or that Debbie Harry, who started her career as a playboy bunny (!) and was considered one of the most beautiful women in the world, actually preached equality and anti-racism all throughout her career, is credited with making rap mainstream, actually named her band after the cat-calls from men in cars who would yell "hey blondie!" out at her and whistle; in an attempt to re-claim the rude nickname, and that she openly admits to her plastic surgery, sexual experiences with women, and past drug addictions?
There have been hundreds of female public figures who have together paved the way for girls of today, and it's preposterous to stay Stevie isn't one of them. Maybe some have accomplished more than others, or should be considered bigger trailblazers. But no matter where you rank her, she is on that list.
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