Epitaph Records, the iconic indie label owned by Brett Gurewitz of Los Angeles punk legends Bad Religion, has signed the Linda Lindas.
In recent days, assuming you engage with Twitter and Instagram in even the most minimal of ways, you surely witnessed the surge in demand for the band—comprised of 10-year-old Mila, 14-year-old Lucia, 13-year-old Eloise, and 16-year-old Bela—thanks to a performance of their track “Racist, Sexist Boy” that was recorded in the middle of a library.
The performance was part of L.A. Public Library’s AAPI Heritage Month Kick-Off event, which featured a set from the band (Bikini Kill and Muffs covers included), as well as an interview. Shortly after the “Racist, Sexist Boy” portion of the set went viral, Varietyreported that the young punk band had signed a deal with Gurewitz’s Epitaph.
“A little while before we went into lockdown, a boy in my class came up to me and said that his dad told him to stay away from Chinese people,” Mila says in the viral clip from behind the drums. “After I told him that I was Chinese, he backed away from me. Eloise and I wrote this song based on that experience.” The song was then dedicated to “all the other racist, sexist boys in this world.”
While the deal was announced amid the “Racist, Sexist Boy” virality, both the band themselves and Best Coast’s Bethany Cosentino—a self-described “surrogate band mom/big sis” to the group—have noted that it was previously in motion.
Back in 2019, the Linda Lindas opened in Hollywood for Bikini Kill, a group—fronted by Kathleen Hanna—that’s known for having pioneered the riot grrrl sound and ethos within punk rock. Earlier this year, the band was featured in the Amy Poehler-directed Netflix movie Moxie. In it, they performed a cover of Bikini Kill’s 1993 classic “Rebel Girl.”
