Few bands have prospered as well during and after Covid as The Linda Lindas, the all-female teens from Los Angeles.
After getting an opening slot for Bikini Kill in 2019, sisters Mila and Lucia de la Garza, their cousin Eloise Wong and friend Bela Salazar received prominence when they recorded a song inside a shuttered LA public library, "Racist, Sexist Boy."
The paradox of these sweet teens, featuring a 12 year-old drummer, screaming about the bigotry they'd experienced, caught fire and went viral, earning them a record deal from Epitaph Records days after the video was posted.
Rock music, and the entertainment industry have embraced the Linda Lindas who have appeared on late night talk shows and found themselves opening for enormous bands, including The Rolling Stones this past weekend.
The Stones were in LA for two nights at SoFi Stadium, home of the Los Angeles Rams. The second night of the engagement, The Stones hired the hometown heroes to warm up the 70,000 who had bought tickets to the Hackney Diamonds tour.
The young women performed 13 tunes, 6 from their debut LP, Growing Up, including the title track you may have heard in the Disney/Pixar films Inside Out, Turning Red and Luca.
They even played a couple of covers, starting with the Talking Heads' "Found a Job" from More Songs About Buildings And Food which came out when the girls' parents were kids.
The Linda Lindas have gotten pretty good at the song since playing it twice in NYC last month, once on the Tonight Show and also at a screening of Stop Making Sense where the Talking Heads got interviewed by Questlove.
The band recorded that cover for a compilation tribute Everyone's Getting Involved: A Tribute to Talking Heads' Stop Making Sense which also has covers by Miley Cyrus, Paramore, Lorde, Chicano Batman and a dozen more.
But it was the mysterious new song that seemed to be a treat for the local audience. [Update: turns out it was "All In My Head"]
Eight songs in the band played the unreleased song about loneliness but had bassist Eloise bouncing around like it was a joyful noise.
Who wouldn't be stoked to live debut a new tune in the same stadium Snoop and Dre rocked the Super Bowl?
The ladies wrapped up the show with the one-two punch of "Oh!" and "Racist, Sexist Boy," to the delight of the fans who got to the show early.
The teens have now played in Japan, on the Jimmy Kimmel Show, at the NPR Tiny Desk, Lollapalooza, Coachella, and even Pappy & Harriets.
Yet bigger and better are clearly in their future.
Their next stop is to open for Green Day on The Saviors Tour on an amazing bill that includes the Smashing Pumpkins and Rancid.
Is there a better tour for young rockers to be on to learn what it is to have a long career of being creative, hardcore, and popular?
Intermingled with that tour, the Linda Lindas will headline some shows along the way in select venues from Springsteen's home of Asbury Park, NJ, to Billie Joe's home of Berkeley, CA.
Get your tickets on the Linda Linda's website.
Of special note is the September 14th date because that will be when the Linda Lindas return to SoFi for the second time this year.
