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She Shreds Best of 2019: Our Most Popular Articles of the Year


December 31, 2019
Written by
Cynthia Schemmer

We created a She Shreds Best of 2019 list that includes our 10 most popular articles of the year as determined by you, our readers.

With our She Shreds Best of 2019 list, we decided to be a bit self indulgent—because what would New Years Eve be without some reflection, some hope, and a whole lot of indulgence?

We went through all of our online content from the last year and compiled a top 10 list of the most popular She Shreds articles of the year—read by you.

Thank you to our readers and subscribers for your continued support and hunger for content about women and nonbinary musicians; thank you to our writers for your talent and ability to bring our visions to life; and thank you to all the musicians, builders, industry workers, and others who are working tirelessly to create a better world in our little corner of the multiverse.

Happy New Year from the She Shreds crew! We can’t wait for you to see what we’re scheming for 2020.

She Shreds Best of 2019

10. Synthesizer Series: Does Any of This Make Synths?

The first in a three-part series, this article outlines the basics of synthesizers and guitars, highlighting their beginnings, how they were developed, and where they are today.

Written by Erin Ramona Martinez
Illustrations by Ashley Ronning

9. Behind the Scenes Series: Meet Anne Buchanan

Behind the Scenes was a monthly series in which every month we interviewed women working behind the scenes in the guitar and music industry. For our first profile, we chatted with Anne Buchanan, Senior Vice President of Human Resources and Chief Human Resources Officer at Guitar Center.

Text by Alex Tyson
Photos and Design by Courtesy of Anne Buchanan and She Shreds Staff

8. Flying with a Guitar: Everything You Need to Know

We outlined just about everything you should consider when flying with a guitar in the North America. From your rights, to knowing airline policies and planes, to how to pack your guitar with care—you all seemed to really need this guide (no shade—so did we).

Written by Emily Harris
Photos by She Shreds

7. A Short and Brief History of the Women Behind the Jam Band Scene

The title sums it all up, so here’s an excerpt for you in case you haven’t read this awesome overview of women in the jam band scene:

“The great thing about the jam scene is that we’re all open-minded. Everyone is willing to be on the cutting-edge of what is right, whether that be political, whether that be equality in any form,” says Kenny-Cincotta. “The fact is, once we start educating people and we all start elbowing our way to the table, the jam scene will be more diverse. It’s becoming more diverse everyday.”

– Quote from Raffaela Kenny-Cincotta, a music writer and Assistant Editor for Relix Magazine.

Written by Isabella Gomez
Photos by Steph Port, Lisa Law, and Jamie Soja

6. Synthesizer Series: How to Make Your Guitar Sound Like A Synth

The third and final part of our Synthesizer Series that explores gear that can be used to transform your guitar sound into a synth! Is 2020 the year we all get freaky with synths? Based on the amount of you who read this series, it seems very likely!

Text by Erin Ramona Martinez
Illustrations by Ashley Ronning

5. String Selects: Knowing Your Perfect String Type (Electric Guitar)

This overview speaks to the varying string components that affect your tone, including changing your strings, assessing your tone, learning about tension, and picking the right strings.

Written by Erin Ramona Martinez
Design by She Shreds

4. The Alchemy Behind Nai Palm’s Intuitive and Curious Techniques

Our interview with Nai Palm (Hiatus Kaiyote) originally appeared as the cover story of She Shreds Issue #16.

Once you offer art to the world it will hopefully, if it is timeless, continue to evolve and be reinvented in new contexts that have different meanings. There’s so much power and beauty in that, and that’s what I strive for with my own music. Some artists can be riddled with ego, but it’s not about that; it’s a blessing if you can contribute beauty to the world and if it can live externally from you and evolve and inspire. 

– Nai Palm, “The Alchemy Behind Nai Palm’s Intuitive and Curious Techniques”

Text by Bailey Pennick
Photos by Lindsey Byrnes

3. The Guide to Building Your Own Pedal Board on a Budget

In this guide, with help from our friends at Reverb, we take the mystery out of putting together your first pedal board, from the board itself to organizing your pedals.

Written by Erin Ramona Martinez
Photos and Design by She Shreds

2. Meet the Women Driving PRS Guitars Forward

We highlighted some of the women that make Paul Reed Smith the success that it is.

“At PRS, there are 8 Directors, 5 of which are women.  When you add in the full Senior Management, 45% are female. Women are involved in every part of PRS, and have been for many years: from operations, supply chain management, charitable fundraising, event management, artist relations, manufacturing, marketing, and public relations, women help drive PRS forward.”

“Meet the Women Driving PRS Guitars Forward”

Written by Alex Tyson
Photos by Megan Lloyd

1. 50 Historic Black Women Guitarists and Bassists You Need to Know

Finally (and we couldn’t be happier), our #1 post of the year is 50 Historic Black Women Guitarists and Bassists You Need to Know. Written by the She Shreds Staff, we chose to focus on black women guitarists and bassists from prior to 1999:

“This list is not to be brushed off as just another list. Rather, it should be treated as a step taken towards exposing the truth. It’s for all of us who aren’t able to count the names of black women guitarists in one hand. It’s for the young black girls aspiring to be musicians but seldom see a history that represents them. It is to learn about our past and evolve into our future, and without black history we cannot accurately do so.”

“50 Historic Black Women Guitarists and Bassists You Need to Know

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