When it comes to true rock royalty, only a few names come to mind. And one of the first is the incomparable Joan Jett. Glam was lucky enough to chat with her recently and get her opinion on girl bands, fashion designers, and her old friend Cyndi Lauper.

Glam: Your Greatest Hits CD is coming out in August. Tell us a little about that.
Jett: I’m very excited about it. It’s always fun to have a record out and talk to people about it. Like the title implies, it will have all our hits on it. But we’re going to have a few new tracks that some people haven’t been exposed to, so I’m excited about that. To promote it, I’m on the road pretty much most of the year. We’ll be doing concerts starting very soon.

Glam: You’re doing a few dates with the True Colors tour [editor’s note: launched by Cyndi Lauper and the Human Rights Organization and Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays] How did that come about?
Jett: They called up to see if we were available for a few dates on the tour and I was definitely interested. It should be a good time. I’ve known Cyndi for many years, from way back from the 80s and it’ll be great to be with her again and on the road.

Glam: Did you happen to catch American Idol when Amanda Overmyer performed your song?
Jett: I thought it was cute. Yeah, definitely. She did a good job.

Glam: What do you think of the musical landscape today? Are there certain female performers you’re rooting for?
Jett: I tell you, you don’t see a lot of girl rock and roll bands. You see a lot of pop stuff. I often have issues with the word “rock and roll” because the word “rock” has really been co-opted by the press and thrown on everybody. Everybody rocks, everybody’s a rock star… it’s really deluded what the word “rock”, “rockstar”, and “rock and roll” means. It’s a real thing. You can’t toss it onto someone who’s not and then expect it to mean something. For me, I find that whole thing disillusioning, that the whole word doesn’t mean much anymore. I don’t see a lot of girl bands that get a lot of media coverage out there. And there are a lot of girl rock and roll straight-up, sweaty, hard, wild, girl bands that have a lot to say, that are very talented, that write their own music… it’s frustrating they’re not given a little more visibility. That’s hopefully what Blackheart [Jett’s music label] does, is give girls out there a shot.

Glam: So, completely switching gears, we’re interested to know who some of your favorite designers are?
Jett [laughing]: It can be tough for me. I find fashion sometimes to be a little overwhelming. There’s so much of it, I don’t even know where to look. For my style, there’s not a super lot to look at. I have to really focus and hone my vision to find things that will work for me. But most designers make at least one piece I can wear. All in all, I don’t wear dresses [laughs again] which really cuts out a lot of stuff! And it’s too bad cause I can really appreciate the fashion, I can appreciate the styles, and the beautiful clothes. I kinda wish I did wear dresses, but it’s just not in my thing. I’m not comfortable, it’s just not my thing. But I can certainly appreciate it. So, for me, that’s pretty limiting. So what that means is just pants, shirts, and jackets.

So what are my favorite designers? Wow… I’ll tell you what I’ve been able to find. I’ve found a couple of great Balenciaga things a few seasons ago. They had a line that had a lot of pieces of things I could wear. Black and white, lots of leather. I do look at them all! I have shirts from a bunch of different people. But it’s not like I have a specific favorite.

[Jett goes to her closet to see which designers are there].

Jett: I have something from Prada, I still have a couple Roberto Cavalli things… and I also wear a lot of street stuff. All the St. Mark’s street stuff. And all the Salvage and the various designers that are similar to that. Marc Jacobs, Balenciaga,Versace… it varies.

Glam: We saw you out and about at last September’s Fashion Week.
Jett: Yes, I was out at some of the shows last September. I want to John Varvartos which is a men’s line.

Glam: Do you like fashion? Mixing and matching?
Jett: I do. I like using a high fashion piece and just some jeans. Like so many people do now. I’m always looking for ideas!