Kaylyn Middleton and Ari Robbins host an all female-fronted band radio show on 90.5 WUSC called "Dress Up" every Monday from 6-8 p.m.
What inspired you ladies to join forces and create “Dress Up?”
AR: I was like, ‘Well, I really want to branch out and do something I’m really interested in.’ Most of the music I enjoyed listening to is female-fronted music. So, my second semester as a DJ, I started “Dress Up.” It really just grew out of the music I enjoyed listening to growing up, like Faith Hill, Shania Twain and Dixie Chicks. There was a lot of female music I wanted to highlight, especially after I noticed the lack of female artists WUSC had in their rotation at the time.
KM: There are so many different female voices from R&B to pop to classical, alt-rock, punk— everywhere. I realized I wanted to try and do a show based off that, but Ari had already started one so I was just like, ‘Please accept me as your co-host. I am super passionate about this.’
What do you look for in the girl bands you choose to play on your show?
AR: I choose people that I listen to on my own time. I do a lot of R&B, soul, folk and J-pop, and I incorporate them all into “Dress Up.”
KM: I would say I like a lot of crazy spastic pop and electronic. I’m trying to find more women who are playing an active role in the creation of their electronic music than just recording a couple vocal samples and having it chopped up.
How do you perceive music as being an empowering outlet for girls?
AR: The fact that you are totally in control is really empowering in itself because you have a voice, and you’re expressing it in a certain way.
KM: It used to be that a lot of female singers were only picked up by male industry and record executives and then had an image created for them. Music can be empowering for anyone, but I think it’s particularly important for female voices to be highlighted without being totally controlled.
Who is your favorite girl band and why? Do they embody feminism?
AR: I’m going to have to say Katzenjammer right now. They’re not ‘of all time,’ but we played them on our last show of the fall semester. They’re Norwegian alt-country and they’re fantastic. It goes back to my love of Dixie Chicks. Katzenjammer is like that mixed with gypsy punk, and it’s amazing.
KM: Tune-Yards’ Merrill Garbus. I like that she is boldly unafraid to experiment. That kind of fearlessness as an artist—as a woman—is just as important to me as showcasing other sides that people like about femininity like tenderness, softness. And I don’t think you should have to choose. I think you can be all and both.
