Roni Lee

Roni Lee (born Rhonda Lee Ryckman, November 15, 1956 in Los Angeles,California) is an American guitarist, and singer-songwriter. She is most associated with her affiliation with Kim Fowley's first mixed gender punk rock band Venus and the Razorblades as the female lead guitarist and vocalist. Her relationship with producer and creator Kim Fowley led to co-writing The Runaways hit "I Wanna Be Where The Boys Are" released on the Live In Japan album in 1977 winning the Recording Industry Association of Japan Gold Record. Roni Lee, Kim Fowley, and the members of the Runaways Joan Jett,Lita Ford are all part of a movement that led the way in the music industry for women in rock. The Woman's International Music Network founded by Laura B. Whitmore gives credit to these pioneers, a genre that was once dominated mostly by men.

After Venus and The Razorblades disbanded, Roni collaborated and performed with Randy California and Ed Cassidy (Spirit) as well as Mars Bonfire and Jerry Edmonton (Steppenwolf) from 1977 to 1978. After spending time recording and performing on the East Coast, Midwest and Montreal, Canada, Roni formed her first power trio and moved to Seattle, Washington and signed a recording contract with Mushroom Records (Canada) but the company went bankrupt when vice president and creative director Shelly Siegel died in 1979.

In 2009 The Runaways (film)The Runaways was released starring Dakota Fanning as Cherie Currie and Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett. The Runaways film depicts the formation of the band in 1975 and focuses on the relationship between Currie and Jett until Currie's departure from the band. The film grossed about $4.7 million worldwide and received generally favorable reviews from critics. It also illustrates how difficult the music industry was for women during that era. The groundbreaking lyrics of the Fowley/Lee song "I Wanna Be Where The Boys Are" is a running theme during the film and Roni Lee and is listed in the credits at the end of the film for her music contribution.

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