Dana Kowalski

Pop Culture, Music History & Generational Identity

Age 52 · Former music journalist and cultural critic turned essayist

I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio — which means I grew up believing music could save your life, because in that city, it might literally be the only thing doing so. I spent my twenties writing concert reviews for a alt-weekly nobody reads anymore and my thirties watching the music industry collapse in real time. Now at 52 I write about what it meant to be young when culture was loud, fast, and completely unafraid of itself. I write for anyone who remembers exactly where they were the first time they saw a real music video.