Jenny Toomey
Encyclopedia
Jenny Toomey is an American
indie rock
musician and arts activist from Chevy Chase, Maryland, and later, Washington, D.C.
She was a member of the bands Geek, Tsunami
, Liquorice, Grenadine, So Low and Choke, among others, and has also recorded under her own name. In November 2007, she was appointed Program Officer for Media and Cultural Policy in the Media, Arts and Culture Unit at the Ford Foundation
.
Prior to working on her own album label, Jenny Toomey played in the band Solow. Later, Toomey co-founded the Simple Machines
record label in 1990 with a housemate who left the project soon after. Toomey ran the label with Kristin Thomson from 1990 to 1998 out of their house in Arlington, Virginia. Along with TeenBeat
and Dischord
, Simple Machines helped document the D.C. punk
and indie rock
scenes. Tsunami was also greatly influential in the D.I.Y (Do it Yourself) movement among the punk, grunge and indie communities. Among the artists released on Simple Machines are Tsunami, Grenadine, Franklin Bruno
, Ida
, and Scrawl
, among others.
Toomey was formerly the executive director of the Future of Music Coalition
, a Washington, D.C. think tank
that translates the complex issues at the intersection of music, policy and law, aiming to help (primarily independent) musicians, including intellectual property rights
, health insurance, and the effects of corporate consolidation of radio and the music industry. She helped found the organization in 2000.
Toomey is a graduate of Georgetown University
with a degree in philosophy
.
with "Slack" (1991)
with "My New Boyfriend" (1991)
"Bates Stamper"
with Grenadine
with Tsunami
with Liquorice
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
musician and arts activist from Chevy Chase, Maryland, and later, Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
She was a member of the bands Geek, Tsunami
Tsunami (band)
Tsunami was an American indie rock band from Arlington, Virginia, formed by housemates Jenny Toomey and Kristin Thomson in late 1990 to play at New Year's party...
, Liquorice, Grenadine, So Low and Choke, among others, and has also recorded under her own name. In November 2007, she was appointed Program Officer for Media and Cultural Policy in the Media, Arts and Culture Unit at the Ford Foundation
Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is a private foundation incorporated in Michigan and based in New York City created to fund programs that were chartered in 1936 by Edsel Ford and Henry Ford....
.
Prior to working on her own album label, Jenny Toomey played in the band Solow. Later, Toomey co-founded the Simple Machines
Simple Machines
Simple Machines was a record label that operated out of Arlington, Virginia. The label was masterminded by Jenny Toomey and Kristin Thomson and, at its peak, had four paid workers- Toomey, Thomson, Pat Graham and Mickey Menard...
record label in 1990 with a housemate who left the project soon after. Toomey ran the label with Kristin Thomson from 1990 to 1998 out of their house in Arlington, Virginia. Along with TeenBeat
TeenBeat Records
Teen Beat is an independent record label, originally based in Arlington, VA, now based in Cambridge, MA. It was founded by Mark Robinson in 1984 at Wakefield High School along with Phil Krauth , Andrew Beaujon , Tim Moran , and Ian Zack .The label was originally set up like a lending library...
and Dischord
Dischord Records
Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in the independent punk music of the D.C.-area music scene. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release Minor Disturbance by The Teen Idles...
, Simple Machines helped document the D.C. punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
and indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
scenes. Tsunami was also greatly influential in the D.I.Y (Do it Yourself) movement among the punk, grunge and indie communities. Among the artists released on Simple Machines are Tsunami, Grenadine, Franklin Bruno
Franklin Bruno
Franklin Bruno is an American singer-songwriter, academic, writer, and blogger originally from Upland, California. He has been a member of Nothing Painted Blue since its inception in 1986....
, Ida
Ida (band)
Ida is an indie rock band from New York City. They are known for their three part harmonies, sparse, minimal, often quiet arrangements, and for their three singer-songwriters...
, and Scrawl
Scrawl
Scrawl is a musical trio based in Columbus, Ohio. The founding members are Marcy Mays , Sue Harshe , and Carolyn O'Leary . Their first show, in the summer of 1985, was a 20-minute opening spot for the Meat Puppets...
, among others.
Toomey was formerly the executive director of the Future of Music Coalition
Future of Music Coalition
Future of Music Coalition is a U.S. 501 national non-profit organization specializing in education, research and advocacy for musicians with a focus on issues at the intersection of music technology, policy and law.- Background :...
, a Washington, D.C. think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
that translates the complex issues at the intersection of music, policy and law, aiming to help (primarily independent) musicians, including intellectual property rights
Intellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
, health insurance, and the effects of corporate consolidation of radio and the music industry. She helped found the organization in 2000.
Toomey is a graduate of Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
with a degree in philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
.
Discography
with Choke- Kingdom of Mattresses (1990)
with "Slack" (1991)
with "My New Boyfriend" (1991)
- Pulley (Various Artists)
"Bates Stamper"
with Grenadine
- Goya (1992)
- Nopalitos (1994)
with Tsunami
- Deep End (1993)
- The Heart's Tremolo (1994)
- World Tour and Other Destinations (1995)
- A Brilliant Mistake (1997)
with Liquorice
- Listening Cap (1995)
External links
- Jenny Toomey official site
- Future of Music Coalition
- Simple Machines records
- "Arts & Culture: Jenny Toomey, Rocking the FCC: Artist/Activist Seeks Local Radio Access for Independent Musicians", from National Public Radio Morning Edition program, February 11, 2004
- Indie rock mothers of invention Tsunami are still fighting the good fight and reuniting for Ladyfest.
- Jenny Toomey on copacetic
- Speaker Bio
- Ladyfest Philly rallies women in the arts to take over the town.
- Bumbershoot review
- Jennifer Toomey - BandToBand.com