Joanna Stingray releases her much-anticipated audiobook narrated by award-winning narrator Cassandra Campbell (Where the Crawdads Sings) of her memoir, Red Wave: An American in the Soviet Music Underground (DoppelHouse Press, 2020). Stingray’s personal account of being the first producer of Russian rock ‘n’ roll takes place in the 1980s and the early 1990s, set amongst an unforgettable cast of characters. Drawing from her enormous archive of recordings, interviews and photographs, their voices mix with hers to dramatize this tale of remarkable bravery, romance, and rock ‘n’ roll. At a time when the U.S. and Russia have now hurtled into a new Cold War, this incredible story of faith in individuals rather than governments gives hope for future solidarity among all peace-loving people.

Joanna was an aspiring young pop star from Southern California in 1984 when she took a trip to Leningrad in defiance of her conservative parents. There, she broke away from her KGB-monitored tour and dove into a raucous underground of avant-garde painters, performance artists, and talented musicians playing forbidden rock music.

Remarkably, these young people were thriving, despite surveillance, laborious jobs, little opportunity, and horrible equipment— because they were original, daring, and had an unquenchable spirit. Joanna devoted herself to bringing their music and artwork to the West and bringing the West to them. She smuggled out their music and artwork. On return trips, she brought them far more than t-shirts and blue jeans: she smuggled in a Yamaha sound system, a Fender Stratocaster, even signed soup cans from Andy Warhol.

So began an incredible adventure that included secret recordings, interrogations, a battle with the KGB to marry her love Yuri (guitarist for the legendary Soviet band Kino) and culminated in 1986 with the release in the US of an album of forbidden rock acts Joanna produced: Red Wave: 4 Underground Bands from The USSR. Despite being considered an Enemy of the State and having her visa denied multiple times, the album found its way to Gorbachev’s desk… and led to a breakthrough decision to let the forbidden rockers record and tour throughout the USSR. In this way, RED WAVE marked the new era of cultural freedom and glasnost; the fall of the Iron Curtain came shortly thereafter. Joanna stayed in Russia and went on to forge her own rock career there in the 1990s, becoming an inspiration for a generation of young women who idolized her, dressed like her, and swarmed stages at her concerts.

Joanna Stingray is the unlikeliest of Cold War heroes. Her contributions to rock history and to diplomacy are undeniable, and her story is more timely than ever.

“Wild and vivid — a rollicking memoir of romance and rock ‘n’ roll in an era of upheaval and transition. From Los Angeles to Leningrad and back again, Joanna’s story is borne along by her infectious, headlong enthusiasm. It’s quite a ride.” – Patrick Radden Keefe, award winning staff writer at The New Yorker

Rock is for young people. It’s an opportunity to open up a road into the future and breathe deeper. And all thoughtful people understand that it’s not just young people fooling around. They are captivated by this music. If some of our rock bands like Aquarium and Kino were released in the West on the Red Wave album in June 1986, why shouldn’t they have been released in Russia? – President Mikhail Gorbachev, 2019, reflecting on his decision that led to the Red Wave bands being allowed to become “official” by 1987.

Joanna Stingray’s appearance in St. Petersburg in the early 1980s must have been God’s response to our unconscious prayers. Her naive bravery, curiosity and generosity created a kind of a lifeline for us rockers: she brought in things we needed to play our music, and took out not only our recordings but the very message of our existence. This fearless maiden broke through the siege that looked hopelessly unbreakable. She threw a life-saver into our waters and she changed everything. No matter how many times we thank her — it’s never enough. – Boris Grebenshchikov (Aquarium)

Red Wave became the deus ex machina that played a crucial role in making Soviet rock music legitimate and accessible by the media and society. Its release forced the Soviet authorities to hastily lift all barriers and restrictions that had kept Russian rock bands in their underground reservation. – Dr. Anna Kan, Soviet Union culture historian, London

Stephen Stills and I performed in Moscow in the late 1980s, and we did our best to encourage and help local Russian bands. It was there that I met musician and songwriter Joanna Stingray, who showed great passion about how music could “change the world.” She instinctively understood the power that rock and roll music brings to people. The audience in Moscow craved the music and what it represented. – Graham Nash (Crosby, Stills & Nash)

As one of the first American musicians to break through the Soviet scene, and one of the few women to be seen as an equal amongst Leningrad’s pantheon of rock superstars, Stingray’s perspective on the development of late Soviet rock is truly one of a kind. This memoir is probably the single most important source for those who want a birds-eye view of late Soviet youth culture, and Stingray’s stories are as entertaining as they are relevant and illuminating. Stingray has managed to capture both the atmosphere of the final decade of the U.S.S.R. and provide a lively contrast to the Western music industry. The importance of this work cannot be stressed enough. – Alexander Herbert, author of What About Tomorrow: An Oral History of Russian Punk Rock from the Soviet Era to Pussy Riot and Punks Around/Punk in a Foreign Space

Joanna was like a tornado. Just imagine someone could drag Tsoi, Kuryokhin and Grebenshchikov into her vortex and like a tractor pull the Russian underground to the West. A breath of fresh air and bright hopes — it’s all Joanna! – Yuri Kasparyan (Kino)

Upcoming: 2024 Archival Documentary Celebrating Joanna Stingray’s 40th Anniversary of her first trip to Russia.

For more information on Joanna Stingray, inquire below:

Media Contact:
Michael Jensen / Nichole Peters-Good
Jensen Communications, Inc.