Relix - Features - The Curious Case of Ani DiFranco

Current Issue details

Buy Current Issue

March Issue details

January - February Issue details

December Issue details

Features

The Curious Case of Ani DiFranco

“My first cassette tape had an address on it and that’s how I first started touring,” says Ani DiFranco. “Basically, young women at colleges would get a tape and write to that address and say, ‘Can she come play?’”

And so began the peculiar career of Ani DiFranco, then a teen from Buffalo, N.Y., who decided from the get-go that she would not offer up her soul as a co-op to big record companies, and therefore, never saw “big success” as a likely outcome. When big success came her way in spite of all that (and not at all by chance—DiFranco is a woman of immense talent and relentless work ethic), she wasn’t sure what to do with it. Remember, this is a kid we’re talking about.

“I think when you’re fifteen and female and operating in the adult world, you’re very aware every moment of the power dynamic that you’re working with—the power of your femaleness, especially your young femaleness,” she reflects over a cup of coffee at a local shop in the Faubourg Marigny neighborhood of New Orleans. “And then, when I was eighteen and shaved my head, it was a rejection of [that]—I don’t want that power. I want a different kind of power.”

For DiFranco, success—and, by extension, power—is a blessing primarily in the sense that it allows her to put her money where her mouth (and heart) have always been. She has managed to flout the unwritten rules of “how things work” simply by sticking to her guns and doing her best to make things happen on her own terms. (For example, she founded her own record label, Righteous Babe Records, at the age of nineteen in 1990). The fact that she has succeeded again and again with this approach says as much about the so-called rules as it does about her refusal to go along with them.

Chatting on a busy street corner in this artistically driven neighborhood—one that is almost certainly inhabited by a good number DiFranco fans—I can’t help but notice that not a soul has bothered her during the course of our conversation. There aren’t any adoring fans clamoring for autographs, googly-eyed stares or giddy whispers—just the occasional hello from a passing acquaintance.

With her toussled hair, easy laugh and her secondhand navy blue workman’s jacket that is rolled at the cuffs to accommodate her slight frame, there isn’t anything about her that screams, “rock star,” this afternoon. The only thing that may suggests this humble and tiny package is the source of such a long list of remarkable accomplishments is her infectious enthusiasm for topics that are dear to her, her razor sharp wit and her charming sense of humor. (At one point during our conversation, she challenges me to a boxing match in order to work out some of the caffeine that has amped up her already highenergy personality.)

Being in her presence is a little bit like being stoned in the sense that time goes out the window—what felt like a 30 minute conversation turned out to be, according to the timer on my little recorder, close to three hours.

But in New Orleans, she is just a neighborhood girl and it’s difficult not to contrast this laid back environment with the sometimes obsessive quality of her fan base, many of whom regard her as a personal friend despite never having met her. After speaking with a few DiFranco fans from the neighborhood, I found that every one of them had stories to tell about how her music had helped them through a difficult time. When I relate a story from a friend who is stuck in a troubled marriage and who sings “Joyful Girl” from 1996’s Dilate to herself as a sort of lullaby when she is feeling lonely and afraid, DiFranco tears up instantly.

On the other side of that coin, there are those in her “tribe” whose behavior can be quite dark at times. Although it is hard to imagine a longtime DiFranco fan who is not accustomed to the frequent twists and turns that have shaped such a long and unusual career, there are those who seem to wish that she’d freeze at a particular age and never move forward, to act as a sort of musical pet who may not stray from the service of a particular emotional need.

Even her relationship with her husband has come under fire. “He’s too tall for her!” complained one flustered message board contributor. And there are those who feel she is somehow betraying her art if she writes the occasional love song instead of keeping it all-political-all-the-time.

But such chatter fails to appreciate DiFranco’s creative wandering for what it is: a product of ongoing maturity and a life well lived.

Comments

There are 17 comments associated with this post

jambot April 18, 2012, 15:02:45

GREAT article! #props

Scott Dickens April 19, 2012, 08:26:19

Great spotlight on a driven, creative force for truly talented, self-made, independent artists. Well-done!

nace campbell April 19, 2012, 10:36:54

loved it and her

nancy April 19, 2012, 20:25:12

Brilliant! This is an expertly written article about one of my very favorite artists and people. It’s high time a writer this talented created a piece about such a down to earth powerhouse as Ani DiFranco. Would love to see more articles from Maistros!

Kristen April 27, 2012, 09:46:35

Wonderfully written article about a wonderful person. Thank you both!

Hollie Maiberger April 27, 2012, 09:53:20

I love that this article touched on how Ani has changed. I don’t care much for the perspective of the fans that only like Ani as an angry lesbian! Life is full of change, and I love that Ani has come full circle. The fact that she finds art in every stage of life is what makes her a truly amazing poet, musician, and most of all, inspiration to her loyal fans. It is why we feel she is a personal friend. She is real and relatable, no matter who you are. I just adore Ani. When I met her after a show in San Diego, I later described it to my friends as feeling as though I has finally met one of my very best friends. I cried afterward. Yep, her impact in my life is that powerful. Thank you Ani!!!!

L April 27, 2012, 10:45:40

I’ve been an avid Ani listener since I first saw her perform in 1989 when I was only 7 years old. This is one of the best articles about her I have read – I love the illustration of her own personal process on evolution along the way. Many of the ‘Ani Tribe’ members I have met seem to forget she is a human being with life experiences outside the stage & studio. I feel this article shows a more wholistic view of this amazing Woman. Well done!

Nicole Dyer April 27, 2012, 10:56:43

This is a brilliantly written piece about one of the most decent human beings that I have ever had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with. I think that she takes life, and through her poetry, and musical abilities speaks as one beautiful voice for MUCH of the populace. I have faith that if more of these like-minded people (regardless of their artistic abilities) SPEAK their voices, it would be just as beautiful, even more so. If not, this world WILL “shrug us off like dinosaurs!”
I have loved to watch Ani’s music grow and change, as she did…as I did…as we all do. Life IS change. If your career is singing about life, then your music MUST change, to be real. I don’t understand all the flack that she has received! I give mad props to Louis Maistros, and thank him for giving the reader a REAL and lovely description of our wonderful city! ...and Ani. :D

Holly O April 27, 2012, 11:35:48

What a beautiful article and the fact that it was written by a man, makes it more special. It is obvious that the writer did his research, but I wonder if he is a fan as well! He captured her spirit over the years and I am proud to see how she has grown over the years and all the good she does for the environment, women/men and children!

Valley April 27, 2012, 12:14:18

Nice job, truly. This is refreshing to read both for it’s subject and absolutely for it’s delivery.
Mahalo nui

AliVsClay April 27, 2012, 12:49:40

So what happened to her commitment to Buffalo? Wouldn’t it have been great to give kids in Buffalo a music education? Lord knows, it’s really needed.

t.dawn April 27, 2012, 13:00:24

What a great article. It was a breath of fresh air! I was given a cassette tape when I was 19 yrs old in 1999 of an Ani album and have considered her music therapy every since. It’s difficult to even put in words how much her music paints a portrait of my own feelings and thoughts regarding feminimity, politics, young angst and the social envioronment we live in. This article found some of those words for me so I thank you. Great job. And to Mrs. Difranco… just today before finding this article…I had a session with “buildings and bridges” and then “herione” to soothe my crazy soul. Thank you.

avi April 27, 2012, 13:12:11

it seems a (/the) poet has been interviewed by a fellow poet.
wonderful to read…

Natalie April 27, 2012, 14:37:20

Wonderful article!

Craig Rymer April 27, 2012, 22:23:47

Very excellent article!! Love Ms. DiFranco’s words and music, have yet to be disappointed by anything she’s released, love her truth-telling and versatility!

Shannon April 28, 2012, 21:04:39

Well said. As I have grown and evolved, so has Ani and she always finds the perfect words to express what I feel. Her life right now is a beautiful, fun and happy image for us to know how good it can be and I thank you for that Ani. You remind us all to have a good time and to make a world that works for everyone.

Karan May 4, 2012, 00:42:22

alison: thanks! and i love seenig people’s early teen pictures. i always thought i escaped the ’90s without making too many fashion mistakes and then i come across a picture like that one!lisa: dude, i’m going to see you in an hour (i hope). i will perform the rap for you in the middle of the scbwi meeting. except probably not. looking forward to reading your blog post, and while i’ve never been an estevez fan myself, i guess wanting to be him in young guns is preferable to wanting to be him in the mighty ducks franchise