Arts & Life

Rock camp teaches Detroit girls to express themselves in loud, wild ways

Michigan Public | By Stateside Staff

Published January 15, 2019 at 4:53 PM EST

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Penny (center) says that when she first joined Girls Rock Detroit, she was put in a band with a group with kids she'd never met. "We actually kind of chose a silly name [for our band]. It was the Seven Bold Banana Slugs."

Long Haul Productions

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Although she started out on the acoustic guitar, Penny says she now prefers the electric guitar. "You could just be louder and wilder," she said. "It was just more free."

Long Haul Productions

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Penny (left) says she feels "excited" when she goes on stage to perform in front of an audience. "And I'm never that nervous because I feel like if somebody is going to judge us, that’s their problem," she said.";

Long Haul Productions

Stateside is featuring intimate, first-person stories about the power of art in a new series called Creating Connection Michigan.

Today, we hear from Penny, a camper at Girls Rock Detroit. It’s a program where girls ages 8 to 15 form a band, learn how to play an instrument, write a song, and perform it in front of a live audience – all in the course of a week.

https://vimeo.com/289359248">MCACA Creating Connections: Girls Rock Detroit // Penny from https://vimeo.com/longhaul">Long Haul Productions on Vimeo.

Before she came to Girls Rock, Penny had only ever played acoustic guitar, but she says playing an electric guitar is a whole different experience.

"My guitar makes me feel safer almost. It makes me feel powerful. And angry sometimes, but strong, that I could do that. And it has given me more confidence," Penny said. "I find it cool that sometimes I can be really loud."

You can find a full transcript of the story here.

The Creating Connection Michigan series was produced by Elizabeth Meister and Dan Collison at Long Haul Productions and funded by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.

This post was written by Stateside production assistant Isabella Isaacs-Thomas.

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