Los Angeles-based musician Linda Strawberry spent nearly seven years on the road. She ran away from home at eighteen. She has toured with the Smashing Pumpkins as a sound engineer and appeared on Billy Corgan's solo album. Her Mormon family fears for her soul and her brother's a missionary in Indonesia. Think this 26-year old doesn't have anything to say about home? Well, you're wrong, because she's got plenty to share.
Our editor and Strawberry spent two weeks trying to get in touch, but technical difficulties and swollen throats prevented a conversation until this weekend. Read what transpired, after the jump. Oh, and we've also included Strawberry's track, "Fuck You, I'm Beautiful".
Linda Strawberry: Hello?
Andrew Belonsky: Hello, is this Linda?
LS: Yes.
AB: Hi. It's Andrew from Queerty.
LS: Hi! I'm so glad we could finally connect!
AB: How are you feeling today?
LS: A lot better. I may have a few coughing attacks while I'm talking to you, but I'm feeling much better.
AB: Let me ask you a question: where were you raised?
LS: U-tah! It was in Orem, Utah.
AB: That's right. You were a Mormon, if I remember correctly.
LS: Yes.
AB: Tell me about that. How many sibling did you have?
LS: I have a small family in my extended family. My mom had six kids: three girls, three boys. I have about a hundred first cousins. My mom has eight brothers and sisters and my dad has seven - so, I think…I'm not really sure. There are so many aunts and uncles, I lose track.
AB: What was it like growing up with so many cousins and siblings? Did you feel like you got lost in the shuffle?
LS: Well, there are so many kids in Utah that you have to work really hard to stand out, especially because all the kids are overachievers, for the most part, because of the culture. Everyone plays instruments, everyone's trying really hard. There are not that many outside influences. I also have two sisters with disabilities, so with all their medical problems, I was really just the invisible one that took care of the kids. It wasn't until I got into high school when I started to play my music and perform that I started to get any attention at all. I was the quiet one. I was really, really quiet, if you can believe it.
AB: I can't believe it.
LS: No one can believe it now! Even when I was working for Billy [Corgan] - I was eighteen through twenty-one - I was really quiet. I was just an engineer. I was in the background, so I didn't really talk that often. I came out of my shell when I was twenty-two.
AB: How did that happen?
LS: I had my heart massively broken for the first time. I fell in love and it was just such a huge mess - a chaotic breakup. I came back to LA and I was completely on my own for the first time. I could create a whole new identity without anyone having pre-judgments of me. I was able to figure out who that was. When I started being creative and letting myself make art and music, it naturally came out.
This here's Strawberry's aforementioned song, "Fuck You, I'm Beautiful".
Editor
Andrew Belonsky Editorial Director
David Hauslaib Publisher
Jossip Initiatives
Linda Strawberry: Hello?
Andrew Belonsky: Hello, is this Linda?
LS: Yes.
AB: Hi. It’s Andrew from Queerty.
LS: Hi! I’m so glad we could finally connect!
Including this makes it look, right off the start, like the most amateurish interview ever conducted.
As to the content, Linda Strawberry is a excellent example of how the internet's democratization of the music industry has a nasty downside. Back in the day, there were some prohibitive requirements for getting such undue fawning: meeting Lou Pearlman, signing to an MTV-friendly record label, tireless self-promotion at the nation's shopping malls, name-dropping. Now all it takes is some glitzy photography, 'basic ProTools and a simple G4 and a $500 mic,' and a Myspace page. Which is not to say the name-dropping doesn't hurt; I don't have the audio recording of this interview, but judging from the transcript, I would reckon it took between 80 seconds and 2 and a quarter minutes for her to refer to Billy Corgan by his first name.
What's the gentile equivalent of 'oy vey'?
That interview and the recent surge of Strawberry "interviews" reeks of a Public Relations guy begging every website he can think of to do an "interview" with one of their clients…LOL.
As a pumpkins fan, I've followed Lind Rowberry's (Strawberry..really dumb choice for a stage name) career and have found it to be a lesson in how not to market yourself as a musician.
Sure, she's toured with Billy..blah blahstanding in the background, posing and plinking along to a canned track…in the end she doesn't play her OWN shows and baits her fans with al sorts of "things to come". She doesn't seem to have a band even. WTF? It all seems like a big con game.
Lately the only thing she's done that's noteworty is try to glom on to all the internet hot ones..Crocker, Tila, some lame ass metal queen and more. She thinks that name dropping gives her a legitimate status. People aren't that stupid. Having a presence on the internet is not important unless you actually back it up with doing what musician does…PLAY SHOWS. The Pumpkins had a lifespan of about 12 or so years and established themselves with heavy touring in the beginning….Linda is fast approaching half of that span and seems to have played about 6 or seven shows as Linda Strawberry. What a crock this interview is.
What everybody above said
She started with a bang, but she's ending with a whimper
i dont play more shows because im incredibly shy..but im trying to get over it.
love.
I think none of who posted above really know what they are talking about. Except Linda. She is a true artist. If you are such a fan of the pumpkins than maybe you should consider that Billy endorses her. Also it is not Linda who brings Billy up in interviews all of the time. It is the one who is doing the interviewing.
People are so judgmental. It's about music, and however you can get it out to your fans. She went the record industry route and it wasn't for her. The industry is so screwed up at the moment, we need artist that are multifaceted.
Linda? You there? Do you actually think that there aren't tons of other people out there who aren't shy and have to get on a stage…that's no excuse. You talk SO much shit and do nothing. I if you actually got your shit togather and learned the songs with a band your shyness about playing would go away because you would actually know the damn material. You are wasting away on the internet and it's fucking bullshit…always some fucked up series of excuses about why you aren't playing out.
Oh and Kelly, STFU. You are full of crap and your words are meaningless. Who gives afuck if BILLY "endorses her" (wtf does that mean?? is she a tennis shoe?). Billy is meaningless and is fast becoming pathetic. I wouldn't want his "endorsement", most people, even his fans, hate him. You are obviously young and dumb and don't know shit about being an "Artist". An artist works…it's not about having an internet presence and talking about shit you'd LIKE to do. You make art, show it and hopefuilly sell it. That is what an artist does. Linda is SO all over the place and, lately, likes to tag herself as this glorious ADD chick, like it's an excuse and a charming state.
Linda's in a swan dive because she goes on the internet and talks shit…sets herself up for all this crap she talks about, creates stupid situations where people are waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting for all these things and then??? NOTHING.
If you, LINDA, would like to regain the respect you once had, you should just fucking disappear, find a real band, support your band by WORKING at it, learn this shit inside and out (I saw you at a show a while back in LA acoustic thing with band) it was SO thin…you could tell that everyone was tentative because they weren't immersed in the material…they didn't completely know it…it was shaky and you should know better than to go out there like that…you're an artist??? you're "acoustic" solo shows, the ones on video…c'mon, get it together. Show some RESPECT for the songs you've written by presenting them in their absolute BEST form. You're way more concerened with your persona and it's obvious in that the music is second in terms of quality. Why don't you just put some fucking jeans on and a t-shirt and try to let the music take first row????
The excuses caught up with you a LONG time ago and that's why people stopped coming to your board, that's why people on netphoria rip you so hard, that's why people on blamo rip you so hard. Your little group of myspace sycophants are gonna figure it out pretty soon too..in fact
I think many of them have already done just that….you ain't no Tila Tequila…at least Tila is immersed in what she does..she's committed to being an internet nothing, a symbol of the decline of MTV…you are committed to ZERO and it's very apparent.
You're gonna tour with the Red Paintings? yeah right…you don't have the fucking balls, those people will put you to shame because they are also committed. If you do get this GIG, you had better get your shitt together…sounds like another round of bullshit to me…typical.
Shy? you aren't shy…you're fucking lazy.