PHILADELPHIA – Girls Rock Philly (GRP), Philadelphia’s only rock camp for girls, marks its fifth year of teaching girls ages 9 to 17 how to rock out while building self-esteem through music education. The camp, which has already reached full enrollment capacity, is held August 8 – 12 on the campus of Girard College (at Girard Ave. & Corinthian Ave.) in Philadelphia, with a public showcase performance on Saturday, August 13 at Noon at World Café Live (3025 Walnut St.) and a professional recording session at WXPN’s studios.

A nonprofit, volunteer-run organization, Girls Rock Philly has grown over the past five years to serve approximately 80 campers each August and to offer other services and programs throughout the year, including year-round practice spaces and workshops. The organization is the winner of the 2010 Women’s Way Powerful Voices Award, as well as a Philadelphia City Paper Big Vision Award, and has partnered with many notable organizations in Philadelphia, including the Food Trust and First Person Arts, for events and programming.

Executive Director Beth Warshaw-Duncan says, “I am incredibly proud of not only what Girls Rock Philly has accomplished in a relatively short time, but how open Philadelphia has been to welcoming and supporting our mission.”

Campers come from the Greater Philadelphia region, including participants from South Philly, Mount Airy, Roxborough, Center City, Delaware County, Montgomery County, the Main Line and from New Jersey and Delaware.  

While no prior musical experience is necessary, many campers have returned year after year to hone their skills, and some have become professional musicians, contributing to Philadelphia’s diverse music scene.  Attia Taylor has grown from a camper in Girls Rock Philly’s first year into a volunteer and a professional musician. “I feel such a passion to empower women because of what GRP gave me and still gives me,” says Taylor.  “It has truly made me into an ambitious and confident woman and constantly leaves me with the feeling that I can do whatever I want – and it’s true! I can’t imagine what my life would be like without Girls Rock Philly.”

Camp Week provides girls with a chanceto unleash their inner rock stars and to learn guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, DJ’ing and vocals. Campers form bands and write their own songs over the course of a week, allowing the aspiring young musicians a space in which to figure out what and how they want to play, while working in a team setting.

The week culminates with a public showcase for the community on August 13 and a recording session on August 14 at WXPN’s studios for the camper compilation CD.  The newly formed camper bands perform their original material in front of a live audience, taking their skills from the campus to a professional music venue and then to a professional recording studio.

The female-only environment, a rarity in the music world, provides both campers and volunteers with a comfortable atmosphere, emphasizing artistic independence and creative ownership, including copyright to their own songs. The camp also features guided band practice, special guest performers and diverse workshops, including the history of women in music, non-traditional instruments, zine-making, healthy relationships, home recording, songwriting, stage presence, self-defense, and band art, where participants have the opportunity to create original t-shirts and buttons for their bands.
  

Girls Rock Philly is supported by individual and corporate donations as well as foundation grants from the Sara Weaver Fund of the Philadelphia Foundation, the Philadelphia Cultural Fund, the Mill Spring Foundation, the D’Addario Music Foundation, the Connelly Foundation, the Valentine Foundation and the Women’s Way’s Community Women’s Fund.