Stephanie Phillips on being a Black fan and maker of indie and punk: a short history

# Here

Stephanie Phillips, singer and guitarist of Big Joanie, wrote We Were Here to set out histories of Black people in rock, punk and alternative music. Growing up in Wolverhampton she loved chart R&B acts and also rock, indie and punk. That combination felt risky to her: she says alternative music made her feel like she was betraying her race and she often kept that interest private.

# Central claims in the book

The book moves chronologically and by genre. It highlights early figures whose work fed rock 'n' roll, such as gospel and blues musicians whose guitar styles influenced Chuck Berry, Little Richard and others. It then traces later Black innovators across heavy rock, punk and hardcore — naming groups like Bad Brains and Pure Hell — and continues to modern alternative scenes.

# Specific examples Phillips uses

• Sister Rosetta Tharpe: Phillips points to Tharpe's guitar work as pivotal in the emergence of rock 'n' roll, and notes that Tharpe fell into relative obscurity after her 1973 death before later rediscovery.

• Bad Brains and Pure Hell: Phillips says pioneering Black punk bands changed what hardcore could be, playing harder and faster and showing technical proficiency that influenced the genre.

• Skunk Anansie and Skin: Phillips discusses how media coverage often focused on appearance or portrayed Black alternative artists as outsiders, rather than engaging with their music on equal terms.

# Personal and scene-level experience

After moving to London Phillips joined the DIY punk scene, which she says welcomed women, non-binary and trans people. Still, she found few Black participants and felt like an outsider. That experience led her to co-found Big Joanie as a Black feminist punk band to create a space for Black women to perform outside narrow expectations.

She uses the phrase "black weirdo" to describe both her own sense of difference and how others labelled Black people who took part in alternative scenes.

# How history and journalism contributed to erasure

Phillips traces a shift where music journalism and major publications helped shape which artists were canonised. She argues periodicals often favoured white male artists and failed to document many Black performers properly. Segregation in the United States, she says, also kept music charts and audiences separated until the mid-1960s, making cross-racial recognition harder.

# Events and conversations that extend the book

# What the book asks readers to do

We Were Here asks readers to revisit established narratives, look at who was left out of music histories, and consider how industry practices, media framing and social segregation shaped the story of alternative music. Phillips pieces together overlooked careers and argues that recognition depends on documenting and retelling these stories.

# Bottom line