I am a child of the 1980s, and many of the unique, grrrl-power singers and rockers from the decade remain important to me. You can find them on my playlist at any given time, and I typically sing homages to them in the shower – as long as no one is home to hear me. Here is my top seven list, of the favorite-favorite girls who still make me want to secretly be a rockstar.
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My A1 choice of all time (although she's tied with #2). I loved the Runaways as well, but Joan's solo career was my favorite. If anything, she's gotten hotter than she was back in the day, and I am so, so glad she's still around. This growling little pixie packs a lot of punch and she snarls like James Dean. I fell in love the first time I saw the video to “I Love Rock 'n' Roll.”
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Also my A1 choice of all time. I would marry Annie Lennox if I could. Her androgyny and sense of style spoke to me when I was younger, and it still does. I love her in the Eurhythmics and I love her now. Her videos are some of the most theatrical works of art I have ever seen, and of course I adore her for putting Hugh Laurie in “Walking on Broken Glass.” Her voice is like a miracle and she is so ridiculously beautiful, someone ought to make her into a porcelain doll. She looks like one anyway.
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The Material Girl was awesome in the 1980s. Watching her evolve throughout the decade was something else. At the time, a lot of people simply assumed she would find her niche and settle, but twenty years later, I am pretty sure that she'll be innovative right to the grave. I love a lot of Madonna's music, but I think her rebellion was more natural when she was first starting out in the business.
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Oh Cyndi. She is just adorable, and that voice is crazy. Crazy! “Time After Time” is my favorite song, and no matter how many times it gets covered, no one will do it like the original wild girl. I'm forever thankful she's still rocking the house as well. Cyndi will be working it until the end of her days, I think, and I'll be rocking out to her long after.
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Who can't love Pat? Gorgeous, tough, and inspiring, she was all about girl power. “Love Is a Battlefield” is still one of my favorite anthems, but I don't think she's ever put out a song I don't like. No promises, no demands, baby. She rocks the house like no other.
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Sade had all my love jams, man. She still does. This woman can still make me cry. I don't think she's ever really going to go anywhere. Sade was what I played as the soundtrack when I was in the middle of a really intense soap opera story with my Barbies. What?
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As opposed to Patti Smith, although she is also awesome. No, Patty Smyth is responsible for “Warrior,” which still makes me want to jump up, run down the street, and sing the song to random guys just so they will truly understand how awesome and strong women are – every single one of us.
I have a tendency to shy away from current female artists. I think that might be because I was spoiled by so many great ones as I grew up in the late 1980s and 1990s. Do you think I missed anyone on this list? And who is your favorite girl rocker, of the 1980s or of all time?
Top Photo Credit: Nany Hoft