An original member of the all-female band Klymaxx, Cheryl Cooley can be described as a trailblazer who has paved the way for other women in the music world. Cooley continues to make changes and debunk any rumors of the past with her single “Love Me,” which is meant to create and release positive energy.
Cooley spoke with rolling out about her career, her single, and the 40th anniversary of Klymaxx’s song “Meeting in the Ladies Room.”
With “Love Me,” why was it important for you to create this song to let people know where you are today?
First of all, music is in my soul. The music part of it just kind of flows. The lyric part [was to be] embracing and open, and just love me [instead of] being so mean and negative and attacking because that never gets anybody anywhere. Everybody throws around the word karma, and it’s more than that, it’s energy. If you put out negative energy, it comes back to you. If you put out positive energy, it comes back to you. There are people out there [who] can be mean and vicious, but you have to radiate [love] for yourself and others.
Those who attack you, you do have to protect yourself or have a team to protect you and not let those attacks [define] who you are. You must stand on your ground and principle that you are this person of love who believes in what you’re doing and wants to offer the world your art, your talents, and your music and continue to perform the Klymaxx legacy music because there are so many people out there who still love the music.
When you hold your instrument now, what is the feeling like?
I guess you could say it’s kind of an old friend. It’s a part of me and it’s just natural to pick it up. My favorite thing to do is play rhythm. I’m really into rhythm guitar playing, playing the chords, and playing little extra things that go on top of the chorus and make it funky. For me, it’s really about the rhythm, and it’s always the [happiest] place for me.
It’s the 40th anniversary of “Meeting in the Ladies Room.” What do you think when hearing that song now?
Time flies so fast. I think it’s great that people still listen to it. As a matter of fact, I’ve even been in a couple of situations where somebody didn’t know who I was, and I heard a few girls say, “Hey, let’s go have a meeting in the ladies’ room.” [I chuckle] because I realize that’s a part of our language now to say, “Hey, come on, girl. I need to go to the restroom.” It feels really good that something in people’s minds clicks with that whole idea of meeting in the ladies’ room, and that’s how people remember and identify Klymaxx. They may not remember the [band’s name], but you tell them the song’s name, and they’re like, “I remember that song,” and I say, “Yeah, I’m the guitar player.”
