Grace Slick Shares The Lesson He Got From Mick Jagger

During the heyday of rock & roll, artists like Mick Jagger and Grace Slick established themselves as household names. Jagger became famous as the charismatic leader of the Rolling Stones, and Slick was the voice of the Jefferson Airplane.

Lots of musicians including Slick looked up to Jagger as a role model because of how quickly he inspired others. After meeting the Rolling Stones, particularly Mick Jagger, she gained insight into what it takes to be a successful lead vocalist in the rock ‘n’ roll scene, which boosted her confidence and ultimately advanced her career.

Within the context of an interview with Morley Views, Grace reflected on when she first heard of Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones. She met both of the world’s finest bands—The Beatles and The Rolling Stones—at the same time, but it was the latter who inspired her to keep performing rock & roll. Mick was the person who gave her confidence on another level.

“Mick, I learned how to be on a rock and roll stage from him,” Slick said. “I didn’t imitate him. But the only thing at the beginning was a girlfriend called me up and said, ‘Oh, you’ve got to get over here because these new guys from Britain are going to be on Ed Sullivan, and they’re called the Beatles.’ And she had this big party about it. And I looked at her, and I thought, ‘Here are four guys in their 20s dressed in these cutesy little suits, with cutesy little hair, singing ‘I want to hold your hand?’ and I’m going, ‘I don’t think so.’”

Furthermore, she added: “But then I saw the Rolling Stones. That’s rock and roll. So how do you behave on the stage? You have to own the stage. If you don’t own it, sorry, you’re out of the picture, you know?”