Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk

Kathleen Hanna’s memoir Rebel Girl is a raw and powerful account of her journey from a turbulent childhood to becoming the iconic frontwoman of Bikini Kill and Le Tigre. As a pioneer of the 1990s punk and Riot Grrrl movements, Hanna shares the challenges of being in a female punk band amid hostility and male violence, and the resilience it took to keep going.

She reflects on the supportive friendships that sustained her—with bandmates Tobi Vail, Kathi Wilcox, JD Samson, and Johanna Fateman, as well as artists like Kurt Cobain, Ian MacKaye, Kim Gordon, and Joan Jett—who showed that punk could still be a caring community. Hanna also opens up about her romance with Ad-Rock of the Beastie Boys, her struggle with Lyme disease, and her creative evolution through her later bands.