In this oral history Zia McCabe discusses her personality, musical growth, and the financial aspects of being a rock star. She talks about her early exposure to the Portland music scene and joining the Dandy Warhols with little musical experience and tons of enthusiasm. McCabe delves into her experience with being signed to a major label and then running the band independently. She also talks about motherhood, activism, and starting her second band The Bush Prairies. The interview concludes with McCabe’s thoughts on women’s visibility and representation in the music industry, the gender binary, and the accomplishments she is most proud of.

Zia McCabe is an artist who plays bass, percussion, and keyboards. She is most well known for playing in the Dandy Warhols and her second band the Bush Prairies. McCabe works in real estate. She currently lives with her partner and her daughter.


Learn more at: WomenofRock.org
Interviewed by Tanya Pearson for the Women of Rock Oral History Project

The Women of Rock Oral History Project is a collection of digital interviews and written transcripts, housed at the Sophia Smith Collection at Smith College—one of the oldest women’s history archives in the United States. Started by Tanya Pearson in December, 2014, WOROHP documents the lives and careers of women in rock whose work and careers have been underrepresented or omitted from rock journalism and historical scholarship. With a collection of publicized and accessible primary source documents, the Women of Rock Oral History Project seeks to facilitate a more comprehensive, inclusive, and accurate cultural history.
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