Le Tigre

Le Tigre is an American art punk and riot grrrl band that formed in New York City in 1998, starting as a project built around Kathleen Hanna, Johanna Fateman, and Sadie Benning before JD Samson joined as a full member in 2000.

How the band started

After Bikini Kill ended in 1998, Hanna released music under the name Julie Ruin and moved to New York with plans to perform those songs live. She did not want to do it alone, so she connected with Fateman, who she had known since meeting at a Bikini Kill concert years earlier. Benning, who had helped Hanna make a video for the Julie Ruin song “Aerobicide,” joined to help with visuals and with turning the material into something that could be performed. Those planned Julie Ruin performances never happened, and the idea shifted into a new band, Le Tigre.

While Benning was still in Chicago, the three shared cassette recordings that became early Le Tigre songs. The band name came from a list of imaginary band names Hanna had been keeping since the mid 1990s.

Early label home and first album

Le Tigre signed with Mr. Lady Records, a label founded in San Francisco by Tammy Rae Carland and Kaia Wilson. Their first album, Le Tigre, came out in October 1999.

In the earliest live setup, Hanna and Fateman performed the music while Benning handled visual elements. JD Samson, a roadie the band met in September 1999, operated a slideshow as part of the show because the band could not afford a projector at the time.

Lineup change and the next era

In 2000, Benning left to focus on filmmaking. Since the band was already on a month long tour, Samson filled in for live performances, and then became an official member. The band’s second album, Feminist Sweepstakes, was released in October 2001.

Collaborations and chart notes

In 2003, Le Tigre collaborated with Chicks on Speed on a cover of Tom Tom Club’s “Wordy Rappinghood,” alongside additional guest artists credited on the release. The cover became a moderate dance hit in Europe, including chart positions on the Belgian Dance Chart and the UK Singles Chart.

Major label move, reissues, and This Island

In March 2004, Le Tigre signed with Strummer, a subsidiary of Universal Records. Hanna described the move as a make or break moment when the band was considering stopping due to exhaustion. In June 2004, Mr. Lady closed, and Le Tigre began reissuing their earlier releases through their own imprint, Le Tigre Records, with distribution handled by Touch and Go Records.

The band’s major label album, This Island, was released in October 2004. The bio states that it sold over 90,000 copies in the United States.

Hiatus after heavy touring

In August 2007, Le Tigre entered a long hiatus. The reason given was burnout from touring This Island and a desire for the members to focus on other work.

Returns and one off projects

In 2010, the band returned briefly and produced Christina Aguilera’s “My Girls” from the album Bionic, a track that also features Peaches. In 2014, Samson and Fateman collaborated with Pussy Riot during a concert organized by Vice, performing “Deceptacon,” and in 2015 they worked with Pussy Riot again on a song and video for the Netflix series House of Cards.

In September 2016, Le Tigre announced a short return to release a single, and on October 19, 2016 they released “I’m With Her” with an accompanying video in support of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential run. In December 2021, the band said they would play This Ain’t No Picnic Festival in 2022.

The 2023 tour reunion

In January 2023, Le Tigre announced their first tour in eighteen years, returning to the road in 2023 for dates across Europe and North America that the bio describes as largely sold out.

Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival controversy

Le Tigre and other Mr. Lady related acts played the Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival in 2001 and 2005. The festival became controversial for a “womyn born womyn” policy that excluded trans women, and critics accused Mr. Lady and Le Tigre of supporting that exclusion by appearing there. The bio states that some acts connected to the label, including Le Tigre and The Butchies, received verbal harassment and death threats after the 2001 appearance.

In 2014, during a boycott campaign aimed at the festival, a banner reading “Apologise for Michigan” was displayed at a Julie Ruin show in Toronto, calling for Hanna to address the band’s festival performances. Samson responded with a statement announcing a personal boycott of the festival until all self identified women were included. The festival shut down in 2015. The bio notes that Hanna has not directly addressed the performances, and that in 2018 she posted support for trans rights on Twitter.

Deceptacon copyright dispute

In October 2021, Hanna and Fateman countersued songwriter Barry Mann after he sent cease and desist letters claiming that “Deceptacon” infringed the copyright of his song “Who Put the Bomp (in the Bomp, Bomp, Bomp).” Hanna and Fateman argued that their use of “bomp” was transformative and also a critique of the messaging in Mann’s song. The dispute was settled in November 2021 through a confidential settlement, with reporting describing the resolution as amicable and without any public admission of liability.

Band members

• Kathleen Hanna, vocals and instruments including guitars, bass, drums, drum machines, sampler (1998 to 2007, 2010, 2016, 2022)
• Johanna Fateman, vocals, guitars, keyboards (1998 to 2007, 2010, 2016, 2022)
• JD Samson, vocals, synthesizers, production, trumpet, guitars, sampler (2000 to 2007, 2010, 2016, 2022)

Former member

• Sadie Benning, vocals and guitars (1998 to 2000)

Discography

• Le Tigre (1999)
• Feminist Sweepstakes (2001)
• This Island (2004)