Charge up your earbuds! Coming to you on Thursday, December 3rd, is Tampon Rock! A production of Anthem Originals for iHeart Podcast Network, Tampon Rock is a scripted series fusing story, music, and comedy. Creators Alysia Brown, Sarah Aument, and Sophie Dinicol bring elements of their own experience and lend their voices to this podcast featuring LGBTQ characters.

Cover art for 'Tampon Rock'. The words 'Tampon Rock' are illustrated in hot pink capitalized letters. Sitting on top of the logo are two illustrated women, the characters of the podcast. The background is an apartment with wood floors, pictures on the wall, a house plant, and a mauve couch. Below the title is 'Written by Alysia Brown, Sarah Aument, Sophie Dinicol"

Deja and Chloe, best friends and roommates, are sussing out their lives as lesbians and musicians in Oakland. Their band, The G.O.A.L (The Greatest Of All Lesbians), is on the rise and original songs will be featured throughout the series. Deja, a Black, mild mannered, queer woman, is new to Oakland’s dating scene while Chloe, a white, energetic, bit obsessive and strong-willed lesbian, is very outgoing with her sexuality. Together they’ll face the complex dating world with a song and hilarious inner monologues. 

 

We had the opportunity to ask some questions of creators, Alysia, Sarah, and Sophie, ahead of this week’s release. 

Tampon Rock is stepping in to help fill a void of diverse stories. How important was representation in the creation of this series?

Alysia: It’s VERY important for us. As a Black, Queer, Woman, my story isn’t told enough and I felt like there wasn’t a lot of representation for me. A lot of stories that are about Black Queer people seem to be rooted in trauma. I wanted to tell a story that was uplifting and happy!

Sarah: Gotta second that. Representation is like a lifeline. I need to see people who remind me of myself and my friends.. We all do.

Sophie: Agreed! Representation was one of our biggest reasons for creating this podcast.

 An illustration; two Black women are in the foreground of what appears to be a party or art show. A Number of women are talking and laughing in the background. Contemporary art is on the walls. The woman on the right is telling the other woman, "Oh that's my friend Majorie's piece...I think it's called, "Unfollow me, follow me" - something about social media."

Can you tell us more about the blend of music and comedy in Tampon Rock? Do you each contribute an individual ingredient or do you co-create on every aspect?

Alysia:  We def co-create, but the composing is done by the amazing Sarah Aument. Sophie and I can just give her a reference song, and then Sarah will show us something an hour later. 

Sarah: (aw thanks!!) The lyrics are king in this show because they relay so much information. At the same time we had a lot of fun parodying different genres and music supervision choices. So fun making the narrator’s music together. 

Sophie: Sarah really does the heavy lifting when it comes to composing music for the podcast (seriously, she’s a genius). The three of us work together to come up with the musical references and the lyrics and Sarah works her magic by putting it all together.

What about Deja and Chloe’s stories resonate with you?

Alysia: The fact Deja and Chloe are two twentysomething year olds trying to navigate love, life and a friendship while being in a band is very resonating. (Not the band part) I feel like we spend so much of our twenties just trying to figure out who we are. I feel like their stories were us when we were that age.

Sarah: So many of Deja and Chloe’s stories resonate with me. I’ve been a twenty something queer person trying to figure out how to be a good friend and messing up or dating the wrong person sooo many times. I also really resonate with Chloe trying to be who she thinks other people want her to be. I’ve spent a lot of my life people-pleasing.

Sophie: So much of it! I feel like we all really pulled from our own 20-something coming of age experiences so even though neither of the characters feels exactly like me, they both go through anxieties I can relate to.

 An illustration of a scene from "Tampon Rock". A living room full of house plants, moving boxes, clothes, and half-hung curtains, provides the background for two women talking. The first woman, a white woman wearing shorts and a baseball cap is saying 'Let's just grab the couch and go." A Black woman wearing long pants and long sleeves is responds, "Oh hell no, I'm going home." The first woman asks, "What about the couch?" and is answered, "What couch? Do you see a couch?"

The series is set in Oakland, what inspired that choice?

Sarah: We wanted something different! Oakland felt free, like a blank slate for us to work with since we don’t have too many representations of the city.

Alysia: Yeah! I feel like Oakland is like if NYC and LA had a baby!

Sophie: I’ll third that! 

How does podcasting, as a medium, compare to your other creative works?

Sarah: I’ve never made a podcast before. It’s a very different medium! You really have to craft things in a way that creates a visual for the listener. Vocal scoffs replace side-eyed looks for example which was really important when directing the actors.

Alysia: As a standup comedian, it doesn’t differ too far from that creativity. We’re using our words to tell a story and hopefully make people laugh. 

Sophie: Creating the podcast has been such a cool way to combine my experience in audio/production and my love for writing and comedy. So even though I’d never done it before, it ended up feeling like a great fit for me. 

We’re a pen pal group and, when we make a pen pal match, we base it on their top 5 favorite interests. These top 5 can be anything from cat memes to TV shows to a love of tea. Would you share 5 things you’re loving right now?

Alysia: The Book “The Body Keeps The Score,” My therapist, my girlfriend, Trash Reality TV, cooking!

Sarah: My cat Bill, extremely hot baths, singing, the ocean, and group therapy (lol not trying to steal therapy Alysia!)

Sophie: My friends, cheese, long morning walks (not on the beach, unfortunately, because Canada), The West Wing, the book “Motherhood” by Sheila Heti

'Tampon Rock' Logo; the podcast name is centered in capitalized hot pink letters. Illustrated tampons surround the name in a frame.

Tampon Rock is something new to the podcast world and just the smart, funny, infusion we need as we close out this wild year. Check out the trailer for Tampon Rock for a little taste and look for the first two episodes to release on Thursday, December 3rd, at iHeart Radio or wherever you listen to podcasts.