Suzi Quatro, the first female bassist to become a major rock star, got her due at the 2020 She Rocks Awards. Quatro was honored with the prestigious “Icon Award,” and rightfully so. She was introduced by Cherie Currie of The Runaways, who professed her love for Quatro and stated that The Runaways and Joan Jett would not exist today if it weren’t for Quatro.
Currie stated that it is an “absolute honor to be here.” “When I first heard this iconic, trailblazing pioneer was to receive this years ‘She Rocks Award,’ nothing, I mean nothing was going to stop me from being here. When I received an email from the legend herself asking me to present her this award my heart was pounding out of my chest,” Currie said.
She praised Quatro for doing more “to change the course of women in music than anyone on this planet.” “She started it all. She dared to kick open the door for us girls in the ’70s when women had no place in a male-dominated industry,” she said, prior to describing her as a “phenomenon.”
In her rocking speech, Quatro clarified a myth about women and stated that they are just as competent to rock as men. 15 years ago, she recalled a male journalist asking her when she was going to retire. Her response was that she will retire only when she turns her back on the audience, shakes her ass and there is silence. Fortunately, she was well-received by the She Rocks crowd, who knew that they were in the presence of a rock and roll queen.
Quatro delivered a killer and soaring version of the Chuck Berry classic “Johnny B. Goode.” It is evident that Suzi Quatro, at 70 years old, still rocks and her influence in the contemporary music scene is as relevant as ever.
At this She Rocks ceremony, Gloria Gaynor took home the “Legend Award.”
To learn more about Suzi Quatro and her music, check out her official website and her Facebook fan page.
Read More: Digital Journal’s Markos Papadatos firmly believes that Suzi Quatro belongs in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
