Quick-Fire Quips is a questionnaire where we get to know people who stand out in the State of Alabama! Today, Alabama Public Radio host Baillee Majors talks with Mary Foster, former camper and current mentor with Girls Rock Birmingham.
Baillee: Hey, Mary! How are you?
Mary: Hi. I'm good, Baillee. Thank you so much for having me today.
Baillee: Of course. Excited to talk more about Girls Rock Birmingham. For people who are hearing about it for the first time, can you just explain what it's all about?
Mary: We are a non-profit organization run out of Birmingham, Alabama. We work with girls in the Birmingham community. Anybody who identifies as a girl is welcome into any of our spaces. We just try to make music accessible for all, and we work with other organizations to get to that point.
Our biggest event is that we hold a summer camp for girls age nine through sixteen over each summer, and we have them form bands. They get to learn instruments throughout the week, and then they do a big showcase at Saturn in Birmingham at the end of the week.
Then we also have a couple of other events throughout the year... Girls Rock Fest is going to be on October 18th at Avondale Brewing Company from 1:00 to 7:00 p.m. You can expect a full lineup that day of women-led solo artists as well as bands... A couple of our camper bands from this past summer are going to perform as well.
Great venue, great people, great food, great vendors. It's just going to be such an awesome time. This is the first time that we've done this since before COVID. So we're expecting a really, really fun event.
Baillee: Now the introductions are done. Let's get you warmed up for the questionnaire. To do that, I want you to say Quick-Fire Quips three times fast.
Mary: Quick-Fire Quips, Quick-Fire Quips, Quick-Fire Quips.
Baillee: Perfect. One hundred out of ten. All right, here's the first question. What comes to mind when you hear Alabama?
Mary: Southern.
Baillee: What is a hidden gem in Alabama that more people should know about?
Mary: I just found out about El Royale Cafe in Birmingham. I've never heard of it before. Beautiful location, great food.
Baillee: Sounds fun! What is your favorite thing about living in Alabama?
Mary: That all my people are here. I'm a very people person, for sure. Mm-hmm.
Baillee: I love that. Something that you don't like about living in Alabama?
Mary: I wish I was closer to New York or Los Angeles sometimes.
Baillee: Fair enough. What is a bad stereotype or something that people get wrong about Alabama?
Mary: I think people don't give Birmingham enough credit. I feel like they hear of it as the Iron City, but it's a good tech city. We have amazing food. There's a great culture down there. It's not as country as a lot of Alabama is.
I'm fortunate to be from the area. But I do think that that's also true for like the Huntsville area or the Mobile area as well. It's a good city community in those areas.
Baillee: What is your favorite getaway spot in Alabama?
Mary: Oh, I would definitely say Turkey Creek. Turkey Creek is right there in Pinson where I'm from. And it's a great little swimming spot. In the summer, you can do picnics out there. It's very secluded. Not a lot of people know about it, and it's so beautiful. Highly recommend.
Baillee: Okay, let's talk more about Girls Rock Birmingham. You have a history with this organization. Can you tell me about that?
Mary: I started going there when I was 11. I attended their summer camp for the first time. I had a couple of folks in my Girl Scout troop who had attended, actually, the very first year that it was open. So I was a camper the second year that they held camp, and it was just my absolute favorite part of the summer.
It's such a great community. I feel like I was learning so much. I was in middle school band at that point, playing the flute, but there's something so different about being in band, learning sheet music, and having it so structured, and then having this community where you're able to literally just rock out with the best people.
T was just such an amazing experience. They shut down a little bit for COVID. And at that point I had aged out, and then as soon as it opened up that they were doing the mentorship program, I knew that I had to sign up. And I have been a part of it ever since.
Baillee: What do you do there?
Mary: I serve mainly as a mentor for the summer camp. So, any girls that have aged out of camp age can actually return as mentors for Girls Rock. And so we're able to help lead the girls during whenever they're in their bands for instrument instruction as well. So, I help teach drums and then I'll serve as a band coach for the rest of the week. But I also help out with their social media, some of their marketing, and stuff like that.
Baillee: Very cool. What is your favorite thing about being a mentor?
Mary: I think my favorite thing about being a mentor is just being able to see a reflection of who I was when I was that young. I was a camper for four years, from when I was 11 until I was about 15. I'm seeing these girls that are coming in that are the same age as I was back then, and then seeing them even age out of the camp and become mentors themselves. It was such a pivotal part of my experience as a pre-teen and teenager, and it's what got me so into music. It's really awesome to see that reflected into others.
Baillee: What instruments did you learned to play at the camp, and do you still play them?
Mary: Yeah, my first year I played bass. I didn't really love it. I still pick it up every now and then.
I did drums my second year and my fourth year, and that has been where home is at for me. I still play now. That's where I coach as a mentor as well. And I play with a cover band, Rising Iris, where we will be playing at Girls Rock Fest.
Then, my third year I did the keyboard, and that was fun, too. But I don't think I'm good at doing things with two hands at the same time.
Mary and Baillee laugh
Baillee: It seems like you have a lot of good memories of this camp. What's a moment that stands out that made you kind of realize like, wow, this place has changed my life for the better?
Mary: I think that whenever I was a camper and I was in those bands, a lot of us had no music experience on the certain instrument that we were playing or even no music experience at all. Being able to perform with a band on a stage at one of the most highly respected venues in Alabama at the end of the week at 11 years old, or for our youngest campers, nine or ten years old, is just such a testament to the community that's built.
You're really working with these people, and our band coaches do such a good job at helping them learn all of their different instruments and really get a song together, because there's a lot that goes into writing a song. There's a lot that goes into the confidence that's needed to perform it. And not only are you building community with the entire camp, but just in your band. It's such a special connection.
Baillee: What's an important lesson from Girls Rock Birmingham that has nothing to do with playing instruments?
Mary: Oh, to be yourself, for sure. We pair these kids up in bands, and we want them on the first couple of days to rapid-fire exactly what they want their song to be about. We've had songs about cats. We've had songs about how to be yourself at school, how to like stop bullies, stuff like that.
These kids, they come from completely different backgrounds, but they all have their unique perspectives on things. And we try to make sure that everybody is being heard. And I think that Girls Rock Birmingham does a really great job at that.
I think that everybody is just encouraged to express themselves whenever they come to the showcase on Saturday and they're performing for their friends and family. It is just such an awesome thing to see.
Baillee: Why is a space like Girls Rock Birmingham needed? There's the friendship, there's the music, but having that space as young women?
Mary: I think that the music industry is very heavily dominated by men. I think that we're at a point in time where it should not be so heavily dominated by men. I mean, if you look at the people who are in like the Grammy committee, if you're looking at the Billboard Top 100, a lot of the times, even still, it tends to be men. And even if there are women on those charts or in those spaces, they aren't as respected as the men.
And so getting all of these kids at this young age to be so empowered within our organization is letting them see that in the future, this is something that I'm completely capable of doing. This is something that I feel confident and comfortable enough to do and to do it as myself.
Baillee: Are there any challenges that you feel like girls face today that you, as a mentor, are able to kind of help guide them through?
Mary: I think that a lot of our job is just instilling confidence into these girls and kids and just letting them know that they are comfortable to or they are empowered to be themselves. They're empowered to take the music and go into whichever direction that they want to go with it. And that that is a lesson that they can take throughout anything that they're doing in the future.
Baillee: What would you say is a rewarding aspect of being a mentor?
Mary: I think that after the showcase on Saturday [during summer camp], it's such a mix of emotions. I'm just so sad that everything is over, but so excited for the next year and so glad that I've seen my band progress this week to a place where they have been comfortable and confident enough to perform on Saturday.
And so I think that's what's most rewarding to me is seeing them come in on Monday or Tuesday, and maybe they're a little bit shy and they haven't gotten out of their shell yet. But then by the time Saturday rolls around, they're just rock stars.
Baillee: Oh, how fun! So tell me about Girls Rock Fest. Can people expect to hear original songs or covers, or what's kind of the mix going to be?
Mary: So our camper bands are Down to Earth and Bad Luck, and so they're going to be performing their original song that they were able to create during camp this past summer. And then we also have Jada Kato performing originals. We have a mentor, Julia Gale, who also, just like me, attended camp the same years as me, and she is now on Spotify. She has her own thing going. She's going to be performing some originals and covers as well.
I know that Rising Iris, where I perform, is a cover band. And then we also have our executive director, Susie Cousins, who's performing with Sweet Jane, and then a couple of other really awesome folks performing at Girls Rock Fest.
Baillee: Do people need to get tickets for this? Is this a free event?
Mary: Girls Rock Fest is completely free. It's come as you are, and we just want everybody to have the chance to be able to attend.
Baillee: Awesome. If you could pick one track to be the official anthem for Girls Rock Birmingham, what would you select?
Mary: "Rebel Girl" by Bikini Kill. That's got to be up there for sure for that.
Baillee: So, this is the miscellaneous part of the questionnaire. Do you have any superstitions or irrational fears?
Mary: I'm actually honestly really scared of the dark. I always sleep with my TV or my nightlight on. To be honest, I don't know why. I feel like the dark is just so lonely, so I prefer a little bit of light.
Baillee: No, I'm the same way, too! I have to have either a faint light or like a hall light on. You know, I think mine is I watched too many scary movies as a kid. Do you have any guilty pleasures?
Mary: Mm-hmm. Pimento cheese is my guilty pleasure. Whether I'm making it or getting it from Chicken Salad Chick. I put pimento cheese on things that pimento cheese probably should not be on.
Baillee: Tell me something on your bucket list.
Mary: Oh, I would love to go to Japan. My grandma was born there. She hasn't been back since. And I think especially going with her and being able to see some of our culture and some stuff like that... That's definitely on my bucket list.
I would love to do a trip. I want to see Cat Island. I want to see Hiroshima, where her family was from, and just really immerse myself. I want to go for like two weeks or something to like really be able to feel it.
Baillee: What is a piece of advice that someone gave you that you still think about?
Mary: To take a breath. I think I'm a student as well. And so I think things can get very hectic, especially now that I'm a senior and I'm involved in a lot of different organizations and stuff around campus. And I still have a lot of other organizations and priorities at home.
I think that self-care days are necessary, and I'm so glad that that has been instilled in me from a very young age, because I don't think I'd survive without it.
Baillee: What do you want to be remembered for?
Mary: I want to say I would like to be remembered for helping others. I feel like that is one of my biggest life's purposes. I've always felt a calling to helping those in need or just helping those around me. Being a teacher, being somebody that people can rely on. And so I think if anybody remembers me for anything, I would hope that it's being a friend and being a helper.
Baillee: Here is the last question. What does Alabama need?
Mary: I think Alabama needs more people who are proud to be from Alabama. I feel like I am at a college campus where we have so many people from Alabama, but we also have a lot of people from out of state. And I feel like the people from Florida are always like, "Oh my gosh, I love being from Florida." The people from California, like, "I love being from California." And people from Alabama are like, "from Alabama." I think if we all have a little bit more pride in our community and can just come together like that, then that is what makes so much impact.
Baillee: That's it for today's Quick-Fire Quips, a questionnaire where we get to know people who stand out in the state of Alabama. That was Mary Foster with Girls Rock Birmingham.
Keep up with Girls Rock Birmingham:
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