The Gossip Artistfacts

1999-2016, 2019-
Beth Ditto (Mary Beth Patterson)Vocals
Brace Paine (Nathan Howdeshell)Guitar
Kathy MendoncaDrums1999-2003
Hannah BlilieDrums2003-2016
Gossip is an indie rock band from Olympia, Washington. The original drummer for the three-person band was Kathy Mendonca; she left in 2003 to pursue a career as a midwife. Blilie had met Ditto when she was 17, and she had played in other bands in Olympia during the time that The Gossip was playing; the band later dropped 'The' from its name.
All of the founding members were friends from Searcy, Arkansas. Ditto riled up the press when she said that as a child she ate squirrels because that is what "people in Arkansas just do - they'd think you were a freak if you ate squid there."
Both Blilie and Ditto are lesbians, and the band is signed to a gay record label called Music with a Twist. Ditto is also a supporter of feminist causes; her favorite protest song is country music star Garth Brooks' "We Shall Be Free." As a stage performer, Ditto embraces her larger than average size, at 210 pounds. She is often on stage wearing nothing but a bra and bicycle shorts, or other similar scantily clad outfits. She does not shave her armpits or wear deodorant because she thinks that "punks usually smell."
Ditto is also one of the forerunners of fashion for plus-size models in the UK. She has worked as a cover model for London's Love magazine, and has modeled in dozens of magazine editorials. The UK clothing chain Evans has a fashion collection that was created by Ditto. She has also walked during the prestigious Paris Fashion Week, in 2010 for Jean Paul Gaultier.
Ditto was nominated as the Sexiest Woman of the Year in 2007 at the NME (New Musical Express) Awards, and was featured nude on the cover of the British magazine NME.
One of the most well-known songs by Gossip is "Heavy Cross," which is from the album Music for Men. The album was produced by the widely acclaimed producer Rick Rubin. With the catchy chorus line, "I trust you, if it's already been done, undo it; it takes two, it's up to me and you, to prove it," the song wasn't huge in America but caught on in Europe, particularly in Germany. In the US the song was included in Christian Dior's 2011 j'Adore perfume commercial, featuring the movie star Charlize Theron walking the runway as a model.
After releasing an album and touring in 2012, The Gossip shut down. They got back together for a tour in 2019, but no new music came of it.
Ditto starred in the 2019 TV series On Becoming a God in Central Florida with Kirsten Dunst and in the 2022 series Monarch with Trace Adkins and Susan Sarandon. Both were cancelled after one season.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

More Songfacts:

BlackbirdThe Beatles

Paul McCartney wrote "Blackbird" in Scotland after reading about race riots in the US, triggered when federal courts forced the racial desegregation of the Arkansas capital's school system.

RehabAmy Winehouse

Amy Winehouse really did refuse "Rehab." She said she drank because she was lovesick, and "you can't go into rehab for that."

TeardropMassive Attack

"Teardrop" by Massive Attack has vocals by Elizabeth Fraser of The Cocteau Twins, who wrote the lyric after learning that Jeff Buckley had died.

Cult of PersonalityLiving Colour

"Cult of Personality" by Living Colour incorporates speeches by John F. Kennedy, Malcolm X and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Light My FireThe Doors

"Light My Fire" was the first song Doors guitarist Robby Krieger wrote. Looking for a universal theme, he decided to write about one of the four elements (air, earth, water, fire).