Happy Ears: Remix EP by Nora Rothman

By Nora Rothman

I have two great passions in life: art and social justice. In the past, they’ve existed side-by-side. In 2017, I decided to meld them together.

In the months leading up to the 2016 election, I was living in Boulder, Colorado working as a Field Organizer on the Clinton campaign. That meant knocking on doors, calling up voters, and recruiting volunteers. Every day was filled with face-to-face interactions with people across political, economic, gender, and racial spectrums. In the aftershock of November 8th, I found myself questioning...everything...but also: how can we learn to better understand each other across social divides?

My internal compass pointed me back to art. Specifically, music: a universal language with an alphabet of human truths. It’s a bridge. And though it certainly can’t solve all our problems, it’s a good place to start.

First, I wanted to address gender equality in the music industry. When the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative came out with their study revealing that 90% of Grammy nominees are men, I knew what course to take. I gathered a team of all female-identifying music producers, sound engineers, label heads and publicists to create five 100% womxn-made remixes.

Since the focus of the project was equal representation, I wanted to partner with an organization that works to make womxn’s voices heard. Planned Parenthood was the first place that came to mind. They promote health, education, knowledge, and empowerment. They speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. And above all else, they are unafraid to stand up for us, no matter the consequences. It was my honor to connect with them on both the Remix EP and our Benefit Concert series this spring.

If you’d like to support the cause, you can make a donation for a download on Bandcamp and/or come out to one of our spring shows. You can follow my work at @Nora_Rothman and on Earhart, my music blog dedicated to gender equality.