Beauty and the Beat by The Go-Go’s
by Lana Fleischli
If you know me, you know at least one of two things. 1: I love the Go-Go’s, or 2: I am a feminist, so it makes sense that when I found out that the Go-Go’s were finally nominated as the first all-female group to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I was so excited!
So, let me start from the beginning. The Go-Go’s have always been one of my favorites for as long as I can remember. An early story takes place in Bovina, Upstate New York. When I was younger, my mom and her friend Paul, and I would go to Bovina for the fourth of July, since one of my mom’s best friends had a house out there. Truthfully, I have so many stories from those trips that I could fill a book, but for now, I’ll just tell the one. I would say I was around five at the time, and we were hanging out at my mom’s friend’s house. It was late and we were planning on going back to our little rental house. As we were leaving, Paul told my mom that Proenza Schouler was renting a house nearby, and they were having a party, so apparently we had to go by.
We went to the party, which was completely not a scene for a five year old and her mom. People were smoking, and there were a ton of models, specifically buff gay male models. I don’t really remember what happened next as it has been eleven years since then, but the next thing I remember is being swung by male models onto a table that had been cleared for me to perform, and I got up and sang “We Got the Beat”. Suddenly all of these models and glamorous people were cheering for a five year old with her rendition of The Go-Go’s.
I even got my friends in elementary school into them. For my 10th birthday, my friend, who shared a love for The Go-Go’s with me, bought me a 1980’s Go-Go’s poster that still hangs in my room.
For my mom’s birthday in 2016, we went to their show with our friends, and it actually happened to be their last show ever. I remember singing basically every song, especially every song off of Beauty and The Beat. We all did.
That album is classic for a reason. Honestly every song is great and lively, and at least for me, it really doesn’t get old. I didn’t even know their story until this past summer when my mom and I watched their documentary. They really broke barriers and records and women in music. According to Billboard, Beauty and The Beat became number one on the Billboard 200 in 1982, and they were the first all-women band to do so. To this day, no other all-female band has matched them.
Honestly, what they have done is incredible, and it’s sad that almost 40 years later, they still haven’t been matched. We all know a girl group that is awesome, but doesn’t get it’s deserved recognition. Imagine if The Go-Go’s didn’t get their deserved recognition, we would all be missing out! However, they kind of still aren’t getting it, as they have been eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for 15 years, and still hadn’t been nominated until February 10th of 2021. I’m just saying, The Go-Go’s have done some pretty amazing things. They helped pave the way for women in Rock and Roll today. I think they should continue trailblazing by being the first all-women band in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.