by Alexandra Galle
Indigo Girls — 1992 
Indigo Girls — 1997
How many artists can say that they met their bandmates in elementary school and have been performing ever since? Well, for the Indigo girls, they have grown through life by each other’s sides and never looked back. From small high school performances in their hometown, to performances in college bars, to small shows and finally, to headlining Lilith Fair, the two-member girl power pair of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers have been through it all together.
The folk-rock duo of Saliers and Ray released their first full album in 1987 and have since released eight more albums with more on the way. Their music was a quick success and instantly soared to the top of the charts. It was easy to sit back and listen to the natural and seamless harmonies of hit songs such as “Closer to Fine” and “Shame on You.” Together, Ray and Saliers have such a smooth and fluent sound yet, interestingly enough, write their songs separately. They simply work out the arrangements together after they have written the majority of their songs which has proven time and time again to be a wonderful feat that could only be completed by two lifelong friends with a high level of mutual respect and talent. For as much success as the Indigo Girls have had together, their talent has not stopped with each other as they have had their independent successes apart from each other with Ray also releasing six solo albums and Saliers being an accomplished author.
Just as important to their music is the work that the Indigo Girls do outside of singing. Saliers and Ray have an extraordinary track record with non-profit work and activism for causes that they are passionate about and committed to, choosing to pursue passions of political activism and music side by side. Ray and Saliers both identify as lesbians and have since the start of their careers. In the 80s, being gay was still a crime and something that people could be jailed or fired for, ostracized in society by, and could warrant someone being classified as mentally ill. When Saliers and Ray first began releasing albums, they were labeled as a “lesbian duo” and rather than trying to fight back against the label, they embraced it and channeled their feelings into creating more inclusive music. Not without difficulty, Ray and Saliers had to advocate for themselves within the music industry. Record labels and concert promoters didn’t necessarily know the best way to market the two women both within and beyond the LGBT community. Critics weren’t always a fan of the two women who didn’t “look” like women performers and for being what Ray described as a masculine woman. Nevertheless, Ray and Saliers would not be stopped from creating their music by some people who simply did not understand them. They had an entire fanbase who supported them and wanted more performers like the Indigo Girls, who were comfortable being who they truly were. With their careers and success as both lesbian women and performers, Ray and Saliers have risen to become prominent figures in the LGBT movement and enabled many of their fans to feel comfortable and safe coming out. They have continued their work with the LGBT community in holding benefit concerts and openly speaking about their sexuality and experience being out during an era when it wasn’t always accepted.
In addition to their advocacy in the LGBT community, the Indigo Girls have held large scale benefit concerts for environmental issues, Native Americans rights, and have worked to abolish the death penalty. Even on their tours, they worked to incorporate recycling initiatives with Greenpeace to make their music experience the most eco-friendly. Ray and Saliers have never shied away from speaking about issues that matter to them and continually committing to doing better and extending their work beyond just impactful music. Fans could get behind their morals and values just as much as they could get behind their music.
The Indigo Girls came to Geneseo in both 1992 and 1996, right as they were coming out with albums almost biannually. Students who listened to folk music could see a group that they were likely already listening to, but also students who may have shared similar identities or passions of Ray and Saliers could have enjoyed and found support in the musical talent of the Indigo Girls.