Let's just say it. When you hear the name of singer-song writer Bambi Monroe for the first time it might conjure up images of stripper poles and Disney movies, but then again, Peaches isn't exactly, well, a peach, is she? If you don't know Bambi Monroe yet, you will soon associate her name with innocence gone awry, polished punk, heart pumping chords and an honest voice that blasts through her homegrown bayou growling anthems.
Bambi has become a young fierce authority on what it takes for a model beauty to kick Pop's ass with steel toes and her weapon of choice, an electric guitar.
Born and raised by her grandparents in Britney Spears' hometown Kentwood, Louisiana; Monroe is the anti-pop princess. "I am rebellious against people trying to put me in a box. I want to be a good role model for young girls, but I've realized that being a good role model doesn't mean being perfect."
Monroe's grandma would tell you she has been singing and dancing since diapers, but Monroe made her first professional appearance at the pure age of nine. Since then, her sound and music mantra has evolved. "I want to be the best girl guitar player in the world and my ULTIMATE dream is to one day be called 'The Queen Of Rock.'
Chrissie Hynde once said, "That was the beauty of the punk thing: [Sexual] discrimination didn't exist in that scene."
Struggling with her own identity, constantly being pigeonholed as a beauty queen, Monroe's defining moment came when she severed her golden locks into a choppy bob and plugged in an electric guitar and screamed "Miss World" by Hole.
Channeling her music heroes Courtney Love, Debbie Harry, Siouxsie, and yes, the Beastie Boys, Monroe recently recorded her first EP ROCK IS A DRUG, produced by her real life hero Tim Bennett of Civilized Tears with whom she co-wrote the songs. "Tim believed in me when no one else did and fought to help me bring my vision to life when no one else could see it. He is a ferocious supporter." The sound of the EP mirrors the definition of Monroe herself- self-governing, sexy, and rousing songs for the masses.
The first song "House of Cards" is about knowing a bad thing when you see it. "If you're caught up in lies and illusions, a house of cards can fall at any time- it's a song about making it out safely before it crushes you- whatever it is that you need to get out of."
The second song of the EP "Rock is a Drug" is a modernized old school love letter to rock itself; the kind that makes you beat up your steering wheel while speeding down the highway. ""Rock is A Drug" is my way of saying you don't need drugs to get a high on life, you can get your high from music."
The last song "Bet You Didn't Know" is a hypnotic stream of consciousness that is clearly the most personal song on the EP. "A lot of people seem to judge me without really knowing my story. I suffer with a speech impediment and asthma, and it's something that affects my life pretty much everyday. I'm telling the world "This is me", try not to judge me so harshly. The lyrics are really honest and simple, and I hope they speak to someone who may be feeling the same way. The affirmation at the end when the choir comes in is 'I'm not gonna fall, I'll stand tall.' "
Mentors have described her "as the second coming of Kurt Cobain", people who know her describer her as caring and kind, strangers focus on her image, and fans who love her sound know she is a shooting Rock star. Whatever associations you want to attach to the name Bambi Monroe, one thing is clear, she is a force to be reckoned with.
