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A review by kevingentilcore
What are You Doing Here?: A Black Woman's Life and Liberation in Heavy Metal by Skin, Laina Dawes
3.0
Going into this book I thought it was going to be about racism in metal as a whole, particularly from a black woman's point of view, which I assumed, was not a pleasant experience. It is about that, but there's so many ins and outs about this book and topic I found the whole thing just utterly heartbreaking and illuminating, and inspiring all at once.
The book covers racism in metal, punk, rock, from a larger perspective. The author doesn't get bogged down in niche, fringe elements, or micro scene politics so much as examines why there's a larger problem with a general nonacceptance of black people playing heavier music or being involved in those scenes. There's much discussion about the American music industry and overall treatment of black people and how they're marketed in music differently and how theres come to be a very specific idea of what black people should enjoy and champion, entertainment wise, that comes from both black and white communities. One of the things I was not prepared for was how many of the black women interviewed in this book were essentially shunned or abandoned by their family and community for being into heavy metal or punk, or more extreme forms of entertainment. There's the idea that they're abandoning their culture, something black people strived so hard to attain in America. But all they wanted is to express themselves, and what is punk and metal if not a way to give a voice to the challenged and the angry?
The book isn't about how metal is racist, it's about how there is racism in metal, but it's really about how everybody is and should be welcomed there and how if you're passionate about something you fight for it.
The book covers racism in metal, punk, rock, from a larger perspective. The author doesn't get bogged down in niche, fringe elements, or micro scene politics so much as examines why there's a larger problem with a general nonacceptance of black people playing heavier music or being involved in those scenes. There's much discussion about the American music industry and overall treatment of black people and how they're marketed in music differently and how theres come to be a very specific idea of what black people should enjoy and champion, entertainment wise, that comes from both black and white communities. One of the things I was not prepared for was how many of the black women interviewed in this book were essentially shunned or abandoned by their family and community for being into heavy metal or punk, or more extreme forms of entertainment. There's the idea that they're abandoning their culture, something black people strived so hard to attain in America. But all they wanted is to express themselves, and what is punk and metal if not a way to give a voice to the challenged and the angry?
The book isn't about how metal is racist, it's about how there is racism in metal, but it's really about how everybody is and should be welcomed there and how if you're passionate about something you fight for it.