1 00:00:03,920 --> 00:00:07,920 Speaker 1: From Futuro Media. It's Latino USA. I'm Maria Josa and 2 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:11,000 Speaker 1: today one of our How I Made It segments with 3 00:00:11,280 --> 00:00:23,919 Speaker 1: Chicana Punk legend Alice Bag. When you think about the 4 00:00:23,920 --> 00:00:27,640 Speaker 1: origins of punk, you might imagine a group of men, 5 00:00:28,000 --> 00:00:31,280 Speaker 1: maybe white, thrashing around to the sound of heavy guitar 6 00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:39,360 Speaker 1: riffs and ear splitting drum crashes. But for Alice Bag, 7 00:00:39,920 --> 00:00:44,800 Speaker 1: the history of punk has always included women, Latinos, and 8 00:00:44,880 --> 00:00:48,680 Speaker 1: people of color. Alice Bag is the lead singer and 9 00:00:48,800 --> 00:00:52,080 Speaker 1: co founder of The Bags, one of the first bands 10 00:00:52,120 --> 00:00:54,840 Speaker 1: to form during the first wave of punk in the 11 00:00:54,880 --> 00:01:01,320 Speaker 1: early nineteen seventies in Los Angeles. Back to Punk is 12 00:01:01,600 --> 00:01:05,960 Speaker 1: much more than just a musical genre. It's an attitude. 13 00:01:06,040 --> 00:01:09,480 Speaker 1: It's a way to challenge the limitations and expectations that 14 00:01:09,560 --> 00:01:13,479 Speaker 1: were placed on her as a Mexican American woman. And 15 00:01:13,600 --> 00:01:17,240 Speaker 1: while she began playing punk nearly four decades ago, Alice 16 00:01:17,280 --> 00:01:21,000 Speaker 1: Bag hasn't stopped making music or pushing back against social 17 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:24,800 Speaker 1: barriers in new and creative ways. And that's exactly what 18 00:01:24,880 --> 00:01:29,520 Speaker 1: she did in February of twenty nineteen at Kuen Sanyette Reimagine, 19 00:01:29,959 --> 00:01:33,000 Speaker 1: a party that brought together women of color artists across 20 00:01:33,040 --> 00:01:37,119 Speaker 1: disciplines to reinvent the long standing coming of age celebration, 21 00:01:37,520 --> 00:01:41,759 Speaker 1: creating a space that challenges the patriarchal history and values 22 00:01:42,040 --> 00:01:44,039 Speaker 1: behind the Keen Sanette tradition. 23 00:01:44,400 --> 00:01:48,080 Speaker 2: We really should be acknowledging milestones, not so much in 24 00:01:48,160 --> 00:01:51,840 Speaker 2: terms of age or beauty, or whether we can pro 25 00:01:51,960 --> 00:01:54,640 Speaker 2: create or find a partner, because all those things don't 26 00:01:54,680 --> 00:01:55,960 Speaker 2: really matter to everyone. 27 00:01:56,600 --> 00:01:59,560 Speaker 1: The event was held at the Los Angeles Music Center 28 00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:03,360 Speaker 1: in the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, the very home of the 29 00:02:03,400 --> 00:02:08,040 Speaker 1: Los Angeles Opera, but rather than opera, the hall reverberated 30 00:02:08,080 --> 00:02:11,840 Speaker 1: with everything from mariachi from the all women Madiaci Collective 31 00:02:12,200 --> 00:02:19,520 Speaker 1: Las Colibriz to Gumbia bachata from Chulita Vinyl Club, the 32 00:02:19,639 --> 00:02:25,640 Speaker 1: Non Binary and Women's DJ Collective, disrupting this traditionally white space. 33 00:02:26,120 --> 00:02:30,160 Speaker 1: Alice's performance in King Senette I Reimagine is a testament 34 00:02:30,200 --> 00:02:34,560 Speaker 1: to the singer's punk ethic, always loud, always bold, and 35 00:02:34,760 --> 00:02:38,600 Speaker 1: always challenging any limitations placed on her due to her race, 36 00:02:39,000 --> 00:02:40,239 Speaker 1: gender or age. 37 00:02:40,560 --> 00:02:43,519 Speaker 2: As a four time King Seneta, I feel like I 38 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:48,080 Speaker 2: am that blend of independent and connected to my community 39 00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:52,520 Speaker 2: and finding my space in this world and feeling like 40 00:02:52,560 --> 00:02:56,440 Speaker 2: I can navigate it with confidence and authority, and that 41 00:02:56,520 --> 00:02:59,640 Speaker 2: I also have like a sort of agency that I 42 00:02:59,680 --> 00:03:02,239 Speaker 2: was in a when I was a king Teneta. 43 00:03:02,600 --> 00:03:05,480 Speaker 1: In this episode of our How I Made It series, 44 00:03:05,880 --> 00:03:09,120 Speaker 1: Alice takes a look back at her own trajectory, reflecting 45 00:03:09,160 --> 00:03:12,400 Speaker 1: on how she came to be the musician and feminist 46 00:03:12,639 --> 00:03:13,519 Speaker 1: that she is today. 47 00:03:14,560 --> 00:03:17,280 Speaker 2: My name is Alice bag I am a punk rocker, 48 00:03:17,520 --> 00:03:25,200 Speaker 2: an author, and I guess that's it a bad cook. 49 00:03:26,320 --> 00:03:30,320 Speaker 2: I think my feminism was born out of growing up 50 00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:33,800 Speaker 2: in an abusive household. My father beat up my mother, 51 00:03:34,080 --> 00:03:38,440 Speaker 2: and my mom my sister and I had to hold 52 00:03:38,480 --> 00:03:40,640 Speaker 2: it together in the house. As I was growing up, 53 00:03:40,680 --> 00:03:42,640 Speaker 2: I was thinking, that's not going to happen to me. 54 00:03:42,680 --> 00:03:44,640 Speaker 2: I'm going to fight back, and I would fight back 55 00:03:44,680 --> 00:03:46,680 Speaker 2: at the time, but I really felt like as a 56 00:03:46,680 --> 00:03:50,840 Speaker 2: little kid, I never had a voice. I remember of 57 00:03:50,920 --> 00:03:54,040 Speaker 2: several incidents when I was trying to put my father 58 00:03:54,120 --> 00:03:56,240 Speaker 2: off of my mother and he would just swamp me away, 59 00:03:56,840 --> 00:04:00,320 Speaker 2: and I felt powerless. And as I ended, I heard 60 00:04:00,880 --> 00:04:04,840 Speaker 2: my teens and I started making music. I got in 61 00:04:04,880 --> 00:04:08,000 Speaker 2: a band and people started listening to me. All of 62 00:04:08,040 --> 00:04:10,520 Speaker 2: a sudden, I felt like, oh, I have a voice, 63 00:04:10,560 --> 00:04:13,520 Speaker 2: I have power. People care what my opinion is. 64 00:04:18,080 --> 00:04:22,320 Speaker 3: We don't have as it's not enough, and we don't 65 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:29,440 Speaker 3: have any punk rock in Los Angeles. 66 00:04:29,880 --> 00:04:34,839 Speaker 2: During the mid seventies, it was very diverse. Los Angeles 67 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:38,400 Speaker 2: has a very large Latino population. We were some of 68 00:04:38,400 --> 00:04:42,039 Speaker 2: the creators of the punk scene. And I think as 69 00:04:42,480 --> 00:04:46,800 Speaker 2: punk rock spread got bigger, it got more commercialized, It 70 00:04:46,880 --> 00:04:50,839 Speaker 2: spread to the suburbs where maybe certain communities interpreted it differently, 71 00:04:51,279 --> 00:04:54,280 Speaker 2: and it started to get a reputation for being a 72 00:04:54,320 --> 00:04:58,799 Speaker 2: white male genre. And in fact, I've never ever thought 73 00:04:58,839 --> 00:05:01,560 Speaker 2: of punk as a I think of it as a 74 00:05:01,600 --> 00:05:04,440 Speaker 2: lifestyle and a way of looking at the world, and 75 00:05:04,480 --> 00:05:07,160 Speaker 2: it's a way of looking at the world that's challenging 76 00:05:07,240 --> 00:05:23,880 Speaker 2: and creative and not accepting barriers. My band used to 77 00:05:23,880 --> 00:05:27,159 Speaker 2: wear paper bags on our heads. That's how I got 78 00:05:27,160 --> 00:05:30,080 Speaker 2: my name. We all took on the name of the band, 79 00:05:30,120 --> 00:05:33,320 Speaker 2: which was the Bags. It was the idea of my 80 00:05:33,640 --> 00:05:36,800 Speaker 2: bass player. She and some of her friends. They went 81 00:05:36,839 --> 00:05:39,320 Speaker 2: to the market. They had paper bags and they cut 82 00:05:39,360 --> 00:05:41,159 Speaker 2: out the eyes, nose, and mouth, and then they drove 83 00:05:41,240 --> 00:05:43,799 Speaker 2: around the city and they would roll down their window 84 00:05:43,800 --> 00:05:46,120 Speaker 2: when they spotted a pedestrian and they'd try and talk 85 00:05:46,200 --> 00:05:48,800 Speaker 2: to them. My friend was telling me that sometimes they 86 00:05:48,839 --> 00:05:51,520 Speaker 2: would run off screaming, and other times they'd laugh or 87 00:05:51,560 --> 00:05:54,200 Speaker 2: they'd start a conversation and find out why they were 88 00:05:54,200 --> 00:05:58,000 Speaker 2: doing that. And she said she had just a marvelous 89 00:05:58,040 --> 00:06:00,640 Speaker 2: time and wanted us to wear our bags on our 90 00:06:00,680 --> 00:06:03,000 Speaker 2: heads when we performed. And we kind of channeled our 91 00:06:03,040 --> 00:06:06,520 Speaker 2: personality and our creativity into creating these masks, and we 92 00:06:06,640 --> 00:06:09,760 Speaker 2: also thought that it would afford us a certain type 93 00:06:09,800 --> 00:06:13,840 Speaker 2: of anonymity, which were two things that were really attractive 94 00:06:13,920 --> 00:06:17,200 Speaker 2: to me because I had never been on stage and 95 00:06:17,440 --> 00:06:21,120 Speaker 2: I wanted to be something fierce. You know. I grew 96 00:06:21,200 --> 00:06:25,800 Speaker 2: up in Eastela, and I remember seeing these Cholas who 97 00:06:25,839 --> 00:06:28,920 Speaker 2: would wear this like extreme makeup. I mean, it looks 98 00:06:28,960 --> 00:06:31,599 Speaker 2: so cool to me. It looks so strong. It didn't 99 00:06:31,640 --> 00:06:34,520 Speaker 2: look like they were trying to look cute. They weren't 100 00:06:34,560 --> 00:06:37,880 Speaker 2: trying to look soft and feminine. They were trying to 101 00:06:37,920 --> 00:06:41,760 Speaker 2: look strong. I don't know, I think of like Tigris's. 102 00:06:42,120 --> 00:06:44,520 Speaker 2: So I remember when I did my first bag. I 103 00:06:44,560 --> 00:06:47,680 Speaker 2: really like elongated the eyes. I put a lot of 104 00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:51,400 Speaker 2: streaks for cheek bones, and it was exciting to have 105 00:06:51,480 --> 00:06:54,240 Speaker 2: this mask on and be anonymous and do whatever I 106 00:06:54,279 --> 00:06:57,880 Speaker 2: wanted to do because no one would judge me. Unfortunately, 107 00:06:58,120 --> 00:07:01,239 Speaker 2: the plan didn't go as we thought it would because 108 00:07:01,520 --> 00:07:05,200 Speaker 2: I didn't realize that when you're wearing paper and you're sweating, 109 00:07:05,560 --> 00:07:08,800 Speaker 2: it sticks to your face. So I had all this 110 00:07:09,080 --> 00:07:11,920 Speaker 2: like sweaty paper bag stuck to part of my face 111 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:15,120 Speaker 2: and then a rip out the other side. So there 112 00:07:15,200 --> 00:07:29,320 Speaker 2: was a sense of chaos to our first performance. I 113 00:07:29,320 --> 00:07:33,320 Speaker 2: grew up watching feminism progress, you know. I remember watching 114 00:07:33,480 --> 00:07:36,520 Speaker 2: the Battle of the Sexist Billy Jean King and Bobby 115 00:07:36,600 --> 00:07:37,680 Speaker 2: Riggs on television. 116 00:07:37,840 --> 00:07:40,000 Speaker 3: The male is king, the mayle is supreme, I said 117 00:07:40,000 --> 00:07:40,800 Speaker 3: it over and over again. 118 00:07:40,800 --> 00:07:41,760 Speaker 2: I still feel that way. 119 00:07:41,920 --> 00:07:43,520 Speaker 4: Girls playing ice team at tennis for. 120 00:07:43,680 --> 00:07:47,840 Speaker 2: Girl, there were attempts to regulate my choices because of 121 00:07:47,880 --> 00:07:52,080 Speaker 2: my class, because of my ethnicity, because of my sexual preference, 122 00:07:52,240 --> 00:07:55,280 Speaker 2: or because my gender. I felt like none of those 123 00:07:55,320 --> 00:07:57,440 Speaker 2: things were valid, and I had to challenge them. But 124 00:07:57,480 --> 00:08:00,000 Speaker 2: then that's, you know, that's part of being a teenager. 125 00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:03,880 Speaker 2: Hopefully you're challenging all the things that the people in 126 00:08:03,960 --> 00:08:06,320 Speaker 2: power have told you. Whether it's your parents, or whether 127 00:08:06,360 --> 00:08:09,920 Speaker 2: it's society, or whether it's the government. It's a perfect 128 00:08:09,920 --> 00:08:14,560 Speaker 2: age to challenge everything. But we shouldn't stop challenging as 129 00:08:14,600 --> 00:08:26,560 Speaker 2: we get older. We should continue to do it. I 130 00:08:26,560 --> 00:08:30,200 Speaker 2: think when I first started making music, it was very personal. 131 00:08:30,320 --> 00:08:33,920 Speaker 2: It was all about me and being on stage and 132 00:08:33,960 --> 00:08:36,640 Speaker 2: having people listen, and that was enough. But I really 133 00:08:36,679 --> 00:08:39,520 Speaker 2: hadn't thought enough about, like what do I really want 134 00:08:39,559 --> 00:08:42,040 Speaker 2: to say? You know, it's like a little kid who 135 00:08:42,080 --> 00:08:45,080 Speaker 2: starts dancing at a party and everybody's looking and they're like, oh, yeah, 136 00:08:45,120 --> 00:08:47,400 Speaker 2: everybody's looking at me. This is great, so they keep 137 00:08:47,480 --> 00:08:49,800 Speaker 2: doing their little show. So I think in a way, 138 00:08:50,040 --> 00:08:51,800 Speaker 2: when I first got in a band, I was just 139 00:08:51,880 --> 00:08:55,120 Speaker 2: excited that somebody was listening to me. But as I 140 00:08:55,240 --> 00:08:59,400 Speaker 2: matured as a writer, I started paying more attention to 141 00:08:59,480 --> 00:09:02,800 Speaker 2: what I was writing, and also as a performer. A 142 00:09:02,840 --> 00:09:06,520 Speaker 2: lot of my energy comes from connecting with the audience, 143 00:09:07,080 --> 00:09:10,320 Speaker 2: so as I picked up on what they were connecting to, 144 00:09:10,640 --> 00:09:13,760 Speaker 2: I realized, Okay, these are things that are important not 145 00:09:13,840 --> 00:09:17,280 Speaker 2: just to me, but they're important to other people. What 146 00:09:17,360 --> 00:09:19,920 Speaker 2: can I do with that. I remember having an epiphany 147 00:09:20,080 --> 00:09:23,000 Speaker 2: where when I was on stage one night and the 148 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:25,280 Speaker 2: stage lights were in my face, in the back of 149 00:09:25,320 --> 00:09:30,960 Speaker 2: the audience was dark, and I was dancing very maniacally, 150 00:09:31,000 --> 00:09:32,880 Speaker 2: and the audience was dancing with me, and the n'd 151 00:09:32,880 --> 00:09:35,320 Speaker 2: slow down, and the audience would slow down, and if 152 00:09:35,320 --> 00:09:38,440 Speaker 2: I'd move in one direction, the audience's eyes would follow me. 153 00:09:39,679 --> 00:09:42,360 Speaker 2: And as I looked out into the darkness, I couldn't 154 00:09:42,360 --> 00:09:44,920 Speaker 2: see the end of the room, and I thought, you 155 00:09:44,960 --> 00:09:49,400 Speaker 2: know what, this could be the universe. We are moving together, 156 00:09:49,520 --> 00:09:52,800 Speaker 2: we are acting together, we are connecting. And I felt 157 00:09:52,960 --> 00:09:57,840 Speaker 2: enormously powerful. And I felt that when you connect with people, 158 00:09:58,080 --> 00:10:00,760 Speaker 2: when you connect with their values, when you connect with 159 00:10:00,800 --> 00:10:02,880 Speaker 2: the goals, that you're unstoppable. 160 00:10:04,440 --> 00:10:16,559 Speaker 1: Son y'all in the Kinsey Jesson the words of punk 161 00:10:16,679 --> 00:10:22,599 Speaker 1: rocker Alice bag Pussy lastimas. 162 00:10:25,960 --> 00:10:28,640 Speaker 4: As. 163 00:10:38,120 --> 00:10:41,959 Speaker 1: This episode was reported by Lisa Napoli, produced by Julia Rochan, 164 00:10:42,160 --> 00:10:45,800 Speaker 1: and edited by Luis Trees. The Latino USA team includes 165 00:10:46,200 --> 00:10:51,720 Speaker 1: Niel Marsis, Sofia, Alissa Kajane Yamoca, Julieta Martinelli, Giny Montago, 166 00:10:51,880 --> 00:10:56,080 Speaker 1: Alisas Carse and Alejandra Salasad, with help from Roul Prees. 167 00:10:56,440 --> 00:11:00,480 Speaker 1: Our engineers are Stephan Obo, Julia Caruso, and Liasha. Our 168 00:11:00,520 --> 00:11:04,640 Speaker 1: director of programming and Operations is Natalia Fiderhotz. Our digital 169 00:11:04,720 --> 00:11:08,320 Speaker 1: editor is Amandel Cantara. Our interns are Sofia Sanchez and 170 00:11:08,400 --> 00:11:12,280 Speaker 1: Marie Mendosa. Our theme music was composed by ze Er Renos. 171 00:11:12,679 --> 00:11:15,040 Speaker 1: If you like the music you heard on this episode, 172 00:11:15,160 --> 00:11:17,400 Speaker 1: be sure to stop by leto Usa dot org and 173 00:11:17,480 --> 00:11:20,560 Speaker 1: check out our weekly Spotify playlist. I'm your host and 174 00:11:20,600 --> 00:11:24,120 Speaker 1: executive producer Maria Josa. Join us again on our next episode, 175 00:11:24,160 --> 00:11:26,120 Speaker 1: and in the meantime, you can find us on all 176 00:11:26,120 --> 00:11:29,680 Speaker 1: of your social media id wo Astella, Approxima Jao. 177 00:11:33,120 --> 00:11:37,360 Speaker 4: Latino USA is made possible in part by W. K. 178 00:11:37,679 --> 00:11:42,720 Speaker 4: Kellogg Foundation, a partner with Communities where Children Come First, 179 00:11:43,240 --> 00:11:49,760 Speaker 4: and the Heising Simon's Foundation Unlocking knowledge, opportunity and possibilities 180 00:11:50,280 --> 00:11:55,280 Speaker 4: More at hsfoundation dot org. Funding for Latino USA is 181 00:11:55,360 --> 00:11:58,360 Speaker 4: coverage of a culture of health is made possible in 182 00:11:58,400 --> 00:12:01,160 Speaker 4: part by a grant from the Robert Johnson Foundation. 183 00:12:05,200 --> 00:12:07,480 Speaker 2: Punk Rock, Did I Pop My Pee? 184 00:12:09,600 --> 00:12:13,520 Speaker 1: I'm Maria no Josa. Next time on Latino USA, we 185 00:12:13,600 --> 00:12:16,520 Speaker 1: go to Mississippi, where the effects of a series of 186 00:12:16,559 --> 00:12:21,160 Speaker 1: immigration raids and chicken processing plants are still being felt 187 00:12:21,400 --> 00:12:22,079 Speaker 1: one year later. 188 00:12:22,480 --> 00:12:25,080 Speaker 2: What people are seeing now are people that are just 189 00:12:25,320 --> 00:12:28,360 Speaker 2: destroyed and broken. But that's not what they are, you know, 190 00:12:28,400 --> 00:12:29,280 Speaker 2: their survivors. 191 00:12:29,720 --> 00:12:31,600 Speaker 1: That's next time on Latino USA.