Draft:Laura Davis-Chanin

• Comment: Oh! One last thing - make sure that all claims are backed up by a reliable source. It can be an interview - it just needs a source. Anything not sourced can be at risk of being deleted.
  Also, I removed the mention of the NYT article - being part of an article isn't really noteworthy per Wikipedia's guidelines unless the article led to others writing about it (like the article was controversial, made a new discovery, and so on). The article would of course be able to establish notability as long as the coverage was in-depth, though. So it could be used to establish notability but is not notable in and of itself, if that makes sense.
  Other than that, what I'd recommend is looking for things like reviews of Davis-Chanin's work, coverage of the band she was in, and music coverage that specifically covers her in depth. Her being in some Blondie songs is kind of a tricky area - participating in a recording can give notability, but only if the reviews and coverage specifically mention her. Otherwise it's a case of notability not being inherited since Davis-Chanin wasn't a main/sole performer in the songs. Like I said, it's a tricky area - still absolutely worth mentioning in the article, though. ReaderofthePack(formerly Tokyogirl79) (｡◕‿◕｡) 23:14, 14 February 2025 (UTC)

• Comment: I did some editing, mostly smaller tweaks, to fall in line with Wikipedia's editing style.
  When writing about an individual, use their last name instead of their first name - using the first name is too casual. Also, avoid hotlinking within an article. It generally goes against Wikipedia's editing styles and at worst, can be seen as a bit spammy - it's almost never done within articles.
  Sourcing-wise, I didn't really take a look at what was here. My big caution is to be careful with sourcing. Not all sourcing is considered to be useable on Wikipedia, particularly when it comes to establishing notability. Offhand I think everything is OK to use, but be very cautious with self-published sources. To show where they're usable you'll need to be able to show where the site and/or the person writing is considered to be a reliable source. Also, interviews are considered to be WP:PRIMARY sources on Wikipedia, regardless of where they're posted. It's not always something I agree with (have to be of note to be interviewed by the biggies, right?), but it's the general standard on Wikipedia. Still, you can use the interviews to back up basic details as long as you can verify that the interview is legit. Also be aware that WP:TRIVIAL mentions are typically not going to be able to establish notability - I haven't checked the sources and offhand they don't appear to be trivial mentions, but always worth mentioning as a precaution. ReaderofthePack(formerly Tokyogirl79) (｡◕‿◕｡) 23:09, 14 February 2025 (UTC)

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Laura Davis-Chanin
Laura Davis-Chanin
Born	December 2, 1961
Occupation	Author
Subject	Memoir, Biography, Music, Rock n Roll
Notable awards	ASCAP Deems Taylor/Virgil Thomsan Award for Excellence in Writing, 2018
Spouse	Les Chanin (m. 1992; div 2016)
Children	2
Website
laurakdc.com

Laura Davis-Chanin (born December 2, 1961), is an American author. Her first book, The Girl in the Back: A Female Drummer's Life with Bowie, Blondie and the '70s Rock Scene, was named one of the top 10 Music books in 2018 by Billboard Magazine. It chronicles her life as a drummer in the late '70s New York punk scene with her band The Student Teachers as they performed in renowned punk nightclubs––Max's Kansas City and CBGBs. The book also covers her relationship with Jimmy Destri from Blondie who produced her band's records as well as her friendship with David Bowie who gave her life-saving advice when she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1980.

Her second book, I am Michael Alago, covers the life of Michael Alago, the remarkable man who brought Metallica to the world as well as reigniting Nina Simone's career.

Her next book, Infinite Dreams: The Life of Alan Vega about the iconic performer and artist, Alan Vega from the band Suicide, will be released in June, 2024.

Music career

The Student Teachers

In 1978, Davis-Chanin formed the band The Student Teachers with her friends, Bill Arning, Lori Reese, David Scharff, Philip Shelley and Joe Katz. When they first formed, Davis-Chanin and Reese decided to be the rhythm section--one of the first at that time in rock n' roll--but they didn't know how to play their instruments. One month after learning the drums and bass, respectively, and the band started rehearsing, they had their first gig at Max's Kansas City opening for The Blessed.

Over the next two years, they played shows with MC5, Iggy Pop, The Cramps, The Mumps, Richard Hell, Teenage Jesus and the Jerks and they attracted the interest of David Bowie who helped them with reworking some of their songs and getting them important shows such as opening for Iggy Pop at the Palladium in NYC.

The Student Teachers, 1979

The band released a single, "Channel 13/Christmas Weather" in 1979 on Ork Records with Jimmy Destri producing. The following year, Jimmy Destri produced Marty Thau Presents 2x5 on Marty Thau's Red Star Records which included a number of songs by various artists including The Student Teachers, The Fleshtones, The Bloodless Pharaohs with Brian Setzer, Comateens and The Revelons.

Blondie

Jimmy Destri brought Davis-Chanin along on Blondie's early tours across the world which she writes about in her first book, The Girl in the Back. He also pulled her in to co-write 2 songs for Blondie--"Slow Motion" in 1979 on the album Eat to the Beat and "Angels on the Balcony" on the album AutoAmerican in 1980.

Personal Life

Davis-Chanin was born in Fairfax, Virginia. Her mother, Mary Virginia Davis, was a technical writer working for the U.S. Government and her father, Douglas Davis, was art critic for Newsweek in the 1980s and 1990s as well as a successful visual and performance artist known for his art performances with Joseph Beuys and Nam June Paik. Davis-Chanin's parents divorced and her father married Jane Bell. Davis-Chanin and her sister, Mary Beth, moved to New York City in 1973 with her father and her stepmother. Davis-Chanin attended St. Luke's Elementary School then Friends Seminary High School.

After being diagnosed with MS in 1980, Davis-Chanin attended New York University earning her BFA in 1986 in Dramatic Writing. She married in 1991 and had two children, Zoe in 1992 and Mara in 1994. After her second daughter was born, she attended CUNY School of Law and graduated in 1999.