Tina and the B-Side Movement to take over People’s tomorrow
June 29, 1995
In a business where “bitch” and “ho” are the very foundations of a lot of rap songs, and music videos seethe with writhing, almost naked female bodies, Tina and the B-Side Movement are a welcome relief.
For those who believe that women are good for more than just shakin’ some bootie, and who hunger for a healthy dose of soulful, from-the-heart grooves, Tina and the B-Sides will work up a major sweat at People’s Bar and Grill tomorrow night.
Anyone who has witnessed the Movement live or given Young Americans or Monster a listen knows how staunchly proud and pro-female Tina Schlieske’s lyrics are. A peek at the woman behind them reveals a strong person who, unlike many female performers, is not afraid to express herself, especially on stage, with energy, fury and buckets of perspiration.
“Strong female performers often shy away from saying they’re feminists or that they believe in women’s rights,” she said in a recent interview. “Men, on the other hand, can show their freedom more easily than a woman.”
Women in the music business are often criticized for the same things men are cheered for, among them, strength, anger and (gasp!) any mention of sex. Like, how come Steven Tyler can cavort with “rag dolls” half his age while no one would shut up about Madonna grabbing her crotch in public?
“Emotion is emotion, whether from a woman or from a man,” Schlieske said. “Like, when Mick Jagger is up there, struttin’ his stuff on stage, you don’t hear people saying, ‘Oh, what a manly thing to do.’ I want to break that mold.”
A lot of times, fans can get a lot of mixed messages from musicians they admire. Videos in stress rotation and stars’ lives displayed for the world to see on “Week on Rock” distorts and jumbles what a celebrity may feel in her heart.
“Some females go to those extremes,” Schlieske explained. “Sometimes they’re like, ‘Wow, freedom for women!’ and then other times they seem to take a step back. I take Madonna seriously when it’s an issue that hits home. Everything else I take with a grain of salt. You can only take her as deep as she can be taken [since she is a public figure].”
Tina’s healthy attitude about herself and women in general can be directly traced to a childhood with a great mother figure who loved music and held singers of the day in high esteem.
“It’s probably because my mom played a very strong female role in my life,” Schlieske remembered. “My mom played a tremendous amount of music: Toni Mitchell, Janis Joplin, that whole female, singer-songwriter kind of thing. Plus the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Elvis Presley.”
Mom’s influence is quite evident, even in lyrics from the Movement’s newest release, Monster. For example, from “What You Don’t Need”: “My mama told me not just once but twice/ to look inside to find what’s right/ don’t fear the dark that’s when you’ll see the light . . . .”
Most young girls, once puberty hits, want so much to be a size six with perfect skin that anything less just isn’t good enough. Schlieske’s upbringing prevented the all-too-common disintegration of self-confidence that plagues the majority of adolescent girls. However, she can still sympathize with young women.
“I saw from a very early age how young girls’ self-esteem can be destroyed,” she said. “And it didn’t happen to me; I don’t know how or why. If I could do anything to help from destroying a young girl’s ego, I’ll do it.”
Schlieske even manages to tackle a false belief that those who are less-enlightened consider true: that sometimes women “ask for it.” In “Paper Doll,” Tina adamantly speaks out that no woman deserves to be treated like a sex object, even if she’s wearing a halter top and mini-skirt.
“I’ve been told that you get what you deserve when you’re having fun/ no means yes when you wear that dress/ you’re gonna get it if you turn him on . . . .” She really understands.
Catch Tina and the B-Side Movement tomorrow night with Grooveyard opening. Tickets are $6 in advance and $8 at the door. An ID is required (underagers should listen from outside).