Joan Jett has been an important figure in the rock scene as she is an influential musician for upcoming musicians, especially females. With her unique vocal and songwriting talents, the fans have titled Jett as ‘Queen of Rock and Roll‘ and ‘the Godmother of Punk.’ As a co-founder of all-female rock band The Runaways, Jett found herself a solid place in the rock scene, especially with the hit song named ‘Cherry Bomb’ at a very young age. The band gained massive success worldwide, especially in Japan.
Jett released five successful albums with the band between 1975 and 1979. Later on, she decided to focus on her solo career. The rocker initially worked with Paul Cook and Steve Jones from Sex Pistols for a couple of songs. After she met with producer Kenny Laguna, they began to work on Jett’s solo debut album. Because many labels in the US rejected the album, the duo released it under their own brand named ‘Blackheart Records.’ The decision to establish a band began to form in Jett’s mind from then on.
The Success of Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
Joan Jett had the idea to form a group in her head in the late ’70s, despite not having the financial stability to establish a band. After many auditions, she formed Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, and her career began to have a new direction. While the band slowly had a fan base during their US tour, financial difficulties followed them during this period.
When the calenders showed 1981, the group’s fate began to be rewritten. The album entitled ‘I Love Rock ‘n Roll‘ became the turning point for the band by being the most commercially successful album of Jett. For seven weeks, the title track stayed at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Their massive success continued with other works like ‘Album’ and ‘Glorious Results of a Misspent Youth.’ Jett has continued her career, which started with financial difficulties while forming a band, as one of the wealthiest female rockers.
Her most recent work with the group was the twelfth album titled ‘Unvarnished,‘ released in 2013. It reached number 43 on the Billboard 200 chart in the US. From that year to the present, she had been away from album works for about ten years.
The Reason Joan Jett Did Not Release A New Album In Almost Ten Years
After the drummer Lee Crystal passed away following the 2013 album ‘Unvarnished,’ Joan Jett started to focus on her movie career. In the past, she already appeared in movies like ‘Light of The Day’ and ‘Boogie Boy.’ Jett starred and worked as an executive producer for the 2014 film ‘Undateable John.’ She also appeared in several shows of other significant bands.
She played Betsy Neal in the 2014 thriller movie ‘Big Driver,‘ which was based on the novella by Stephen King. Jett appeared on its premiere on Lifetime in the same year. The rocker voiced Sunshine Justice, the character from the American animated television series ‘Steven Universe.’
While she was focusing on her movie career, the fans were waiting for a new Joan Jett & the Blackhearts album. Fortunately, good news from her and the band in the previous months of 2022 made the fans happy. They released the acoustic album entitled ‘Changeup‘ on March 25, 2022, after almost ten years stayed away from album works. The album gave fans a sense of nostalgia as it includes the old impactful songs like ‘Cherry Bomb’ and ‘Bad Reputation.’
You can listen to the album below.
