When you think of the name “Big Joanie,” you might think of a comical image of a woman. However, this is the name of a British band formed in 2013 by Stephanie Phillips. Phillips was frustrated with the lack of intersectionality in the punk music scene, so she began searching online for bandmates to start a black feminist punk band. Chardine Taylor-Stone, the band’s former drummer, and Kiera Coward-Deyell, the group’s former bassist ( later replaced by Estella Adeyeri ) answered the call, and Big Joanie was formed. The band’s name is a tribute to Phillips’ mother Joan and is based on Caribbean figures of speech. The term “acting big” in Caribbean slang means acting bigger than yourself which Phillips thought was the perfect name for a confident and powerful woman.
Big Joanie debuted at the inaugural First Timers festival in London, a set of workshops featuring beginner bands and promoting diversity in the music industry. Shortly after their performance, they released their first EP Sistah Punk, and two years later in 2016, they released a three-song single called Crooked Room on their own recording company called Sistah Punk Records. The single took heavy inspiration from writer Melissa Harris-Perry and her thoughts about being a black woman in a white patriarchy. The single’s heavy feminist themes would be featured widely throughout their future music, tapping back into the roots of the band.
In 2017, Coward-Deyell left the band, and Estella Adeyeri, a bassist known for her work with other smaller indie bands like Witching Waves and Charmpit, filled her position. A year later the band released their debut album Sistahs, which is also the album we will be discussing today. The album was the first record released by the publishing company Ecstatic Peace Library run by book editor Eva Prinz and Sonic Youth member Thurston Moore. Sistahs was their breakthrough into the mainstream music scene outside of England. The record’s sizable success would put the band on the radar of famous female artists such as Sleater-Kinney and Bikini Kill, both of which Big Joanie opened for during their tours.
The band is still producing music, having released their second album Back Home in 2022, receiving positive reviews from critics who described it as “expansive and a breadth of style”. Shortly after the release, drummer Taylor-Stone left the band leaving Phillips and Adeyeri as the two remaining members of Big Joanie. Outside of music, members of the band are involved in communitarian activities such as running diversity-themed music festivals and assisting campaigns such as Stop Rainbow Racism.
Sistahs ( 2018 ):
On their debut release, Big Joanie knocked it out of the park with Sistahs. Although the band’s footing remains in the punk genre, in their thirty-one minute and eleven track album, they push the boundaries of what punk is and how it can be defined, with a lot of their tracks leaning towards the more experimental side with influences of lo-fi, jangle pop, and goth sounds mixed in. The band has taken inspiration from older musicians such as the Ronettes, Nirvana, and the Breeders with a twinkle of the 90’s Riot grrrl movement. The album’s title is inspired by the idea of the feminist sisterhood and friendship women have with one another. The cover shows a picture of Phillip’s mother Joan whom the band is named after and her aunt on vacation. It was almost an impossible task to choose three songs from this album to feature as the album is truly a no-skip record, however the standout tracks I picked, I feel reflect the themes and the sound of Big Joanie the best.
New Year:
New Year is the perfect song to lead into the record. The soft opening vocals and light guitar chords bring a warm feeling to the track before the lead-up into the chorus. The song radiates themes of confidence and self-empowerment. Something about the rawness of Phillip’s lyrics and the scratchy lo-fi recording presents a type of vulnerability to the listener that is so rare to find in modern music. Its passionate but relatable lyrics are another hard-hitting point as to why this is one of the standout songs from Sistahs.
Fall Asleep:
A killer track and New Year’s follow-up song, Fall Asleep is one of if not the best song on this album. The song was originally released as a single before Sistah’s release. The heavy guitar beat and vocals can only be described as a total earworm. Something that won’t leave your ears days after listening. The lyrics again can only be featured as nothing short of brilliant, combined with its electronic, synth music touches and a clapping accompaniment, contrary to its name, Fall Asleep makes you feel like dancing. Tracks like these show how Big Joanie can breathe new life into the punk genre by adding creative features. The song is their biggest hit and is featured in the popular video game Life Is Strange.
How Could You Love Me:
The second to last track from the end of the album, the song’s faster pace but sadder lyrics hit hard as the song continues. The speaking monologues included in between lyrics reveal a darker meaning. How Could You Love Me can be described style-wise as American indie from the 2000s with parts of the riot grrrl added into the song. The feelings the lyrics give off can remind one of a codependent toxic relationship where one person has doubts about how they are treated and their self-worth.
Although Sistahs is a quick listen, Big Joanie is redefining punk music in real time. Their experimental nature and mix of other genres create a mesh of punk music that gives the genre life. Personally, I can’t wait to hear more from them as they grow.
