{"product_id":"9781471194948","title":"It Takes Blood and Guts by Lucy O'Brien","description":"One of the most important females in British music of my lifetime.' Colin Murray? 'A beautiful, raw and exhilarating book that will leave you feeling empowered.' Fearne Cotton `The pioneering Skunk Anansie frontwoman's memories offer a very different take on the Britpop era.Skin's story is one of a rhomboid peg spurning both the round and square hole, drilling dimensions of her own.We now have a lot of language - intersectionality, microaggressions - to describe many of the events in this memoir. However, nothing can really equal candid, first-hand experience, recounted matter of factly here. It would be instructive for anyone who thought they knew the story of the 90s to spend 300 pages in Skin's Skin.'?OBSERVER `The epic tale of Glastonbury's Black British headliner. Skin is one of the Britpop decade's forgotten epics. Skin's feet are positioned firmly on the ground throughout; she's a winningly genial, sweary soul on paper. 4 stars'?Jude Rogers, MOJO `The former Skunk Anansie singer pulls no punches in this heady trawl through her life from tough beginnings in Brixton to work as an LGBTQ+ activist and beyond' The ILead singer of multi-million-selling rock band Skunk Anansie, solo artist, LGBTQ+activist and all around trail blazer - Skin is a global icon, and she has been smashing stereotypes for over twenty-five years. Her journey from Brixton to one of the most influential women in British rock is nothing short of extraordinary.?  ?`It's been a very difficult thing being a lead singer of a rock band looking like me and it still is. I have to say it's been a fight and it will always be a fight. That fight drives you and makes you want to work harder. It's not supposed to be easy, particularly if you're a woman, you're black or you are gay like me. You've got to keep moving forward, keep striving for everything you want to be.' ? Born to Jamaican parents, Skin grew up in Brixton in the 1970's. Her career as an artist began in the `90s, when Skunk Anansie was formed in the sweat-drenched backrooms of London's pubs. Since then she has headlined Glastonbury and toured the world, both as lead singer of Skunk Anansie and as a solo artist.    Her success has been groundbreaking in every way, which has come at a personal cost. She has always been vocal about social and cultural issues, and was championing LGBTQ+ rights at a time when few artists were out and gay.    ? Told with honesty and passion, this is the story of how a gay, black, working-class girl with a vision fought poverty and prejudice to write songs, produce and front her own band, and become one of the most influential women in British rock.\u003cbr\u003eBinding: Paperback \/ softback","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56300193415541,"sku":"9781471194948","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781471194948.jpg?v=1762787589","url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/products\/9781471194948","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}