Meet Tana Douglas, the world's first female roadie.

She's worked with global legends such as Carlos Santana and Iggy Pop, lived under the same roof as AC/DC, consoled Sharon Osbourne, wife and manager of the iconic Prince of Darkness. Tana Douglas found her calling in 1973. For these long decades she, one could say, "served in the trenches of rock"! We don't think we need to answer the question whether her job was stressful…

And at the same time, Tana Douglas' career has been colourful and fulfilling! She made a name for herself and a reputation world's first of the Rowdy woman. The story of her working life is more than fascinating ....

Starting the journey at 15 years old

Today she is a production consultant - she only occasionally promotes artists. Such a sedate life is a far cry from her "wild" in the '70s. Being by a 15-year-oldTana Douglas hitchhiked to the bohemian world, feeling unwanted by her family. In that era, the young woman was listening to a lot of music. "We Gotta Get Out of This Place." Animals, realising that she either needed to rob a bank or become part of the rock movement to make a fortune and make a name for herself. She chose the latter.

Douglas' career began when she was 15 years old. A chance encounter with Philippe Petit turned into her first appearance on his team when he did a crazy tightrope walk between the North and South Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre in New York!

The first group in which Douglas found a place was. Fox. The Rowdies were in no hurry to pack their gear, so Tana stepped in - and did it so well she was hired. Was in the right place at the right time, as they say. Throughout her career, the woman has steadfastly adhered to one important rule: "Never let others see signs of your weakness." This wisdom Tana has shared with the Sharon Osbornewho wanted to "end it all" in the early '80s, at the time of the Blizzard of Ozz Tour.

"She took everything to heart. She was so gentle then - you'd hardly recognise Ozzy Osbourne's stubborn manager in that girl!" laughs Tana.

Life with AC/DC and danger

An important period in Douglas' career was her collaboration with Australian rock monsters AC/DCwith whom she lived under the same roof! She recalls that the band members were so young and "funny":

"They acted like teenagers! They were very young, funny. Bon Scott was always worrying that he was too old to rock! But he was just over 20 years old! It all seems so funny and cute today..."

Before she turned 21, Tana had time to work with the Carlos Santana, Status Quo, Iggy Pop. - she accompanied them on major international tours. She has also collaborated with The Police, Elton John, Lenny Kravitz. and others. But life surrounded by musical giants only sounds beautiful. Being a roadie means often being in danger. Douglas has heard unkind remarks from fans, taken on Iggy Pop's "who can hang from the banister the longest" challenge, and once had fans throw live fish at her.

Being a roadie, and being a roadie woman - a hell of a job. But Tana was able to pull it off with some special "feminine" tricks.

"Being a female roadie means working twice as hard as everyone else to be seen as capable and strong. I became a crew chief very quickly and was responsible for people from different departments. You know, not every man wants a woman telling him what to do. But I did little tricks, like saying, "Why don't we try it?" instead of giving orders in a rude tone.

"Secret" pregnancies and the downside of a career

When Douglas got pregnantshe kept it a secret. And then she kept her son a secret. Alas, the prospects for a single mother were not good: a low-paying job and goodbye to her career. She continued to work while seriously pregnant and later found herself in a protracted custody battle with her mother, with whom her son remained.

But not only that. absence family happiness, as well as severe stress were chasing a female roadie.

"It's hard to put into words the stress you feel in this job. You can drink seven days a week and no one suspects there's anything wrong with you - it's become the norm in the music industry. The thought of quitting, or worse, ending it all, haunts you at least once a month. And I'm glad that people in the industry today are asking for help - there are a lot of charities that provide psychological support. It used to be seen as an indicator of weakness. For this reason, many people simply dropped out of the game...".

Another of Rowdy's problems-- isolation.

"It's hard to adapt to an environment outside of the music industry. We lived in an isolated world with completely different rules."

But Douglas was able to withstand all the litigation, and even released a book about her life and career - what it's like to be a female roadie, and the world's first!

"Actually the whole experience makes me feel proud," Tana admits.