Paulina Romano is a 19 year old rock guitarist from Stamford, CT. She has toured through the Northeast as a member of the Paul Green Rock Academy. Read the interview below to hear her plans for her future as a musician!
Interview
For our readers who don’t know you, can you introduce yourself?
“My name is Paulina Romano, I’m a guitarist from Connecticut and I love playing anything from blues to rock to metal. I’ve been playing guitar for almost 4 years. I love the instrument.”
Your dad is also a guitarist. How do you think growing up in a musical household affected you?
“I’ve been influenced by that a lot. I’ve been surrounded by guitar my whole life. When I was a baby, my dad and I would drive around playing Jimi Hendrix and Joe Satriani, so I’ve always heard rock music.”
Who are some of your biggest musical influences?
“I love Iron Maiden and Black Sabbath – specifically Tony Iommi. His riffs are so awesome. Adrian Smith, Dave Murray, Randy Rhoads – all those guys. And my dad too.”
You are a part of the Paul Green Rock Academy. How has being part of that program benefited you as a musician?
So much. I don’t know where my life would be without it. It got me onstage with a real band playing rock music. I was in a jazz band before and it was just playing jazz chords in the background but with Paul Green I was onstage with a band playing guitar solos. I also went on tour which was crazy. It benefited me a lot.
What would you say is your best or favorite tour story?
There was one time, we were somewhere in New York playing a little party gig. Then Jon Anderson from Yes just casually shows up as a guest. He was just there with his wife and it was so amazing. Nobody told us he was going to be there. Also playing Survivor in a random parking lot at midnight was so much fun.
Last time we spoke you mentioned you’re writing a lot of original music. Is there potential for a solo album there or, what are your plans with that?
Whether it’s with a band or solo, I definitely want to put out some music. I think I’m going to start working on a solo album because I’ve got some time. I write music everyday
Being a fan of music from the ‘70s up to the present, how would you say the stigma around female rock musicians has changed?
I feel like it’s changed a lot. There are so many more female musicians in rock now. I read Lita Ford’s book and she was talking about starting The Runaways and how being a female musician was really uncommon and nowadays I’ll scroll through Instagram and see so many female musicians. It’s awesome. 50 years ago you would never see female musicians.
Have you faced sexism in the music industry? What advice would you give to people facing that kind of discrimination?
Yes. So I would have a gig and I know the only reason why people would come up to me would be because I’m a girl and they were basically saying ‘you’re pretty good for a girl’. And the advice I would give would be to just push past it and say ‘yeah I’m a girl and I can shred’.
Thank you for doing this interview today Paulina! Is there anything else you’d like to include?
Shannon Wilk is a Connecticut-based music industry creative; bassist and photographer. She has brought her bass guitar skills to stages all over the country in various bands, most recently The Heartless and Alice Loves Alien. Dubbed the “female Rudy Sarzo”, Shannon has a unique and captivating stage presence in addition to her distinctive playing style. Since beginning her professional career in 2019, she has made waves in both the live music scene and the digital world, playing legendary stages such as the Whisky A Go-Go and the Monsters of Rock Cruise, as well as accumulating nearly 1 million views across online platforms.At 17 years old, Shannon Wilk has become a force to be reckoned with in the rock n’ roll scene. In addition to her blossoming music career, she has continued to showcase her passion for live music through concert photography. From KISS to Foo Fighters to Evanescence to Yungblud and more, Shannon has captured rock royalty through her lens. In 2018, she launched her own publication, Rockin’ Interviews, where she has connected with beloved ‘80s heavy metal artists through her independently produced podcast.
Iron Maiden-The Trooper-Cover by Paulina Romano–GREAT JOB!!!!!