Today, singer/songwriter/feminist/author Ani DiFranco releases her newest track “Baby Roe.” An outspoken activist throughout her illustrious career, DiFranco considers reproductive freedom a civil rights issue. “Baby Roe” is the latest chapter in her commitment to support comprehensive civil rights for women. With women’s autonomy again in jeopardy and on the ballot this November, DiFranco is urgently trying to bring attention to this vital issue. Listen to “Baby Roe” HERE and via DSPs HERE.
DiFranco says, “The song ‘Baby Roe’ is a direct descendent of the book The Family Roe by Joshua Prager. This finely researched and grippingly told work chronicles the unfolding of events surrounding the 1973 Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade. Prager lets you way behind the curtain to meet all the characters involved, including the adult child of Norma McCorvey (aka Jane Roe), born and adopted-off in the course of her mother’s quest for the right to a legal abortion. Baby Roe, unaware of her role in history until she was an adult, remains, nonetheless, in support of a woman’s right to choose. As I would be.”
In 2016 DiFranco released the pro-choice declaration “Play God” after performing the song on tour over the years. Ani’s label and charitable foundation Righteous Babe has supported women’s rights initiatives and pro-choice organizations, including NOW, National Abortion Federation, Planned Parenthood, NARAL, National Institute of Public Health and Emily’s List.
DiFranco is currently starring as ‘Persephone’ in the Tony and Grammy Award-winning Best Musical, Hadestown. DiFranco’s history with Hadestown began in 2010 when she invited Anais Mitchell to release the original studio album of Hadestown on DiFranco’s label, Righteous Babe Records. DiFranco originated the role of ‘Persephone’ on the album, leaving an enduring impression on the character as the show evolved over the course of several years.
Widely considered a feminist icon, Grammy winner Ani DiFranco is the mother of the DIY movement, being one of the first artists to create her own record label in 1990. While she has been known as the “Little Folksinger,” her music has embraced punk, funk, hip hop, jazz, soul, electronica and even more distant sounds. Her most recent album is the June 2023 25th Anniversary Edition reissue of her seminal album Little Plastic Castle on Righteous Babe Records. Her memoir No Walls and the Recurring Dream was a New York Times Top 10 best seller in 2019, and her debut children’s book The Knowing is out now. Her 23rd album is planned for release later this year.