When Pat Benatar saw Billie Eilish’s documentary The World’s a Little Blurry, she was struck by the progress young singers are making.
“It probably never occurred to (Billie) that she couldn’t. Everything was right there,” says Benatar. “I don’t even think ‘I can’t be that person’ is in their mind dictionary. ”
Benatar shares these postulations in the latest installment of Epix’s Women Who Rock docuseries, which airs Sunday (9 p.m. EDT/PDT). She will be joined by a parade of genre-bending artists, including Shania Twain, Macy Gray, Sheryl Crow and St. Vincent, who offer succinct comments on breaking through in the male-dominated music industry.
A veteran of the rock circuit — debut album In the Heat of the Night came out in 1979 — Benatar, 69, is adept at navigating gender minefields.
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She was the first female artist to be played by luck rather than design on MTV (“You Better Run”). But after 11 studio albums, a slew of hits co-curated by guitarist-husband Neil Giraldo, and upcoming induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Benatar still stands with a defiant smile.
She and Giraldo will also finally unveil the musical Invincible, which uses her songs and is based on Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet, in November.
Honest Benatar called to a show in Akron, Ohio from her bus and spoke to USA TODAY about the misogyny she experienced throughout her career and why you won’t hear “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” during this tour .
Question: In the documentation you mention the numerous obstacles you overcame. What was the hardest thing about getting into the music industry?
Pat Benatar: I grew up in a very female-dominated household. So my experience was that there was no difference between men and women. When I was born, nothing shocked me more than to see that wasn’t quite true. People patted you on the head, but they didn’t mean it; they lied. It was annoying.
Q: What was when you decided to have children? (Benatar and Giraldo have two daughters.) Did you feel that this would hinder your career?
Benatar: I was madly in love with Neil and wanted to have a baby and thought we’d find out. The reality was frightening. There was no help from the record company and management. They were absolutely furious that I (got pregnant). My manager said, “Why would you do something like that?” They knew the misogyny was there, but when that happened, it became amazingly clear. It changed everything for me. I got really, really violent.
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Q: When you see some of your colleagues who are still touring – like Joan Jett and Debbie Harry – do you feel a sense of sisterhood?
Benatar: Definitely now. It was really sad when we did it. Deb and I knew each other as label mates, but the competition was fierce. The people running the boat really artistically pitted you against each other. It really sucked. We never had a chance to (celebrate other female artists) until Lilith Fair.
Q: You also have a grand crowning glory in November with your induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. It’s been 20 years since you were first nominated and you will finally be recognized. Did the delay bother you?
Benatar: Never. What we enjoy is seeing how excited everyone else is – our family or friends or the (DJ) in Seattle who put that first cassette of “Heartbreaker” on their radio station. But listen, it’s great. It’s great for our kids. But the truth is, they recognize work already done, so it doesn’t change anything. It doesn’t help validate me as a person, but it’s nice.
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Q: You sang these big vocal songs on this tour including “Heartbreaker”. They also played “Helter Skelter” (by the Beatles). why this song
Benatar: Because I want to have some (power) fun! We do a lot of songs that we don’t always play like “In the Heat of the Night” and “I Need a Lover”. We have what we call the “Holy 14,” songs that if we don’t play them will give us (a hard time). And we don’t do “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” and fans have heart attacks and I say I’m sorry, out of respect for the victims of the families of these mass shootings, I don’t sing it. I tell them if you want to hear the song go home and listen to it. (The title) is ironic, but you have to draw the line. I can’t say those words out loud with a smile on my face, I just can’t. I’m not going to the stage and soapbox – I’m going to my lawmakers – but this is my small contribution to the protest. I won’t sing it Hard.
Q: As an artist, how do these social traumas like the repeal of Roe v. Wade and the mass shootings on the tenor of the work you sang 30 or 40 years ago?
Benatar: Well, “Invincible” is really important. Like all of us, I am concerned about basic autonomy rights. This is a slippery slope. I’m not about abortion. I worry that people aren’t paying attention to what that actually means.
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