When Pat Benatar watched Billie Eilish’s documentary, “The World’s a Little Fuzzy,” she was amazed at the progress made by the young singers.
“It probably never occurred to (Billie) that she couldn’t do it. Everything was right there,” says Benatar. “I don’t even think it’s in her thinking lexicon that ‘I can’t be this person.’ ”
Benatar shares those nominations in the latest installment of “Women Who Rock” by Epix docuseries, airing July 31 (9 pm EDT/PDT). The third episode, which also features the “Heartbreaker” hitmaker, arrives on Sunday. She is joined by a parade of artists spanning all genres, including Shania Twain, Macy Gray, Sheryl Crow and St. Vincent, who offer incisive commentary on breaking into the male-dominated music industry.
As a veteran of the rock circus (the debut album “In the Heat of the Night” landed in 1979), Benatar, 69, is well-versed in navigating genre minefields.
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She was the first female artist to perform on MTV (“You Better Run”) more by luck than by design. But after 11 studio albums, a stash of hits co-propelled by guitarist Neil Giraldo, and his imminent induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Benatar still stands with a defiant smile.
She and Giraldo too they finally unveil the musical “Invincible” – using his songs and based on Shakespeare’s “Romeo & Juliet” – in November.
Calling from her bus headed to a show in Akron, Ohio, the candid Benatar spoke to USA TODAY about the misogyny she’s experienced throughout her career and why she won’t be hearing “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” during this tour.
Question: In the documentary, you mention the many obstacles you faced. What was the hardest thing about breaking into the music industry?
Pat Benatar: I grew up in a very feminine home. So my experience was that there was no difference between men and women. When I came into the world, nothing was more shocking to me than to see that this was not exactly true. People patted you on the head but they didn’t mean it; they were lying It was irritating.
Q: And when did you decide to have children? (Benatar and Giraldo have two daughters.) Did you feel it would hinder your career?
Benatar: I was madly in love with Neil and I wanted to have a baby and I thought, we’ll figure it out. The reality was terrifying. There was no help from the record company and management. They were absolutely furious that I (got pregnant). My manager said, “Why would you do something like that?” You knew the misogyny was there, but when it happened it became incredibly clear. She changed everything for me. I became very, very fierce.
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Q: When you see some of your bandmates still on tour, like Joan Jett and Debbie Harry, do you feel a sense of sisterhood?
Benatar: Definitely now. It was really sad when we were doing it. Deb and I knew each other as label mates, but the competition was really tough. The people running the ship really put you up against each other artistically. It was really disgusting. We never got a chance to (celebrate other female artists) until Lilith Fair.
Q: You also have a grand coronation in November with your induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. It has been 20 years since you first met the requirements to be nominated. and you are finally being recognized. Did the delay bother you?
Benatar: Never. What’s fun for us is seeing how excited everyone else is: our family or friends or the (DJ) in Seattle who put that first cartridge on his radio station with “Heartbreaker.” But listen, it’s great. It’s great for our kids. But the truth is that they are acknowledging the work that has already been done, so it doesn’t change anything. It doesn’t do anything to validate me as a person, but it’s nice.
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Q: You’ve been singing those great vocal songs including “Heartbreaker” on this tour. You’ve also been playing “Helter Skelter” (by The Beatles). Why that song?
Benatar: Because I want to have some (expletive) fun! We’re doing a lot of songs that we don’t always play like “In the Heat of the Night” and “I Need a Lover.” We have what we call the “holy 14s”, songs that if we don’t play them, we’re going to have a hard time. Y We’re not doing “Hit me with your best shot” and the fans are having a heart attack and I say, I’m sorry, in deference to the victims of the families of these mass shootings, I won’t sing it. I tell you, if you want to hear the song, go home and listen to it. (The title) is ironic, but you have to draw the line. I can’t say those words out loud with a smile on my face, I just can’t. I am not going to go on stage and to the soap opera, I am going to my legislators, but that is my small contribution to the protest. I’m not going to sing it. I weighed.
Q: As an artist, how do these social traumas like the repeal of Roe v. Wade and mass shootings affect the tenor of the work you’re singing 30 or 40 years ago?
Benatar: Well, “Invincible” is really important. I am concerned, like all of us, about the fundamental rights of autonomy. This is a slippery slope. It’s about not aborting for me. It worries me that people aren’t paying attention to what this really means.
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