Being a woman in metal has to be fucking exhausting. Not only is it likely that you’ve got a microscope on everything you do and people always criticize whether you deserve to be where you’re at in your career, but it’s very likely you’re also being ogled at and judged for your appearance. Us dudes don’t have to deal with half of the shit.
Yet when Coal Chamber bassist Nadja Peulen joined the band after replacing Rayna Foss back in 2002, she began receiving attention over her looks, ultimately becoming known as one of the “hottest women in metal”. During an appearance on Knotfest‘s “She’s With The Band” (as transcribed by Blabbermouth), she explained how that sort of attention never really bothered her. In fact, it was a positive thing — most of the time.
“I didn’t mind. [Laughs] Yeah, I mean, it’s a compliment. I think as a woman, you kind of — how do I say this? — as women, most of the time we get a lot of attention anyway, and then being on stage, whether it’s with music, acting, comedy, modeling, whatever, it just amplifies the whole thing. And sometimes it’d be a little embarrassing too. I remember I had to announce Slipknot at the Kerrang! Awards, [in], I don’t know, 2002 or something, and when they announced me to come on stage to introduce them, they did the whole ‘hot woman’ thing and it really — at that moment, I was, like, ‘Oh, no. This is so embarrassing.’ It’s, like, ‘Is this all I’m known for?’ And so I had to go on stage and introduce them, and I lost my voice. I got really nervous and uncomfortable about it. But at the end of the day, it’s a compliment. So I don’t mind it at all.”
When asked by the show’s host Tori Kravitz about whether she worried her spot in Coal Chamber would be considered “a bit of a novelty” because there weren’t so many female performers in metal at the time, Peulen said that never really bothered her.
“Yeah, I don’t know really what I was thinking at the time, to be honest. It’s interesting, ’cause now people look differently at all that kind of stuff, and the whole sexist thing comes out. It’s never really been — I don’t know — it never really fazed me that much, to be honest. I never really had that many issues with any of that.
“People left me alone most of the time. I had really no issues. But it’s also, like, I know how to stand up for myself. I think I also give off a certain energy of ‘don’t fuck with me.’ … So, I guess, honestly, I never really had any problems. And, yeah, I took it as a compliment. It’s nice. Sometimes it was a bit uncomfortable. It was, like, ‘Okay.’ But, nah, in general, I’m okay with it.”
By: www.metalsucks.net
