Dona Nichols is a working journalist, filmmaker, photographer and journalism professor at San Jose State University. She’s also a stand-up comedian and former columnist known as the Silicon Mom. She’s written three screenplays, two sitcom pilots and has completed a short documentary titled, “From Athlete to Addict.”
She is adviser to the sports journalism program at SJSU, where she also teaches new media and videography. Her favorite class is Sex, Drugs & Rock ‘n’ Roll, in which she chronicles the contributions rock ‘n’ roll has made to our culture. It’s a popular class in which students receive extra credit for dancing on the table.
Nichols has had a lifelong love affair with rock ‘n’ roll, country western, bluegrass, R & B, blues and jazz. Directing this documentary is a passion project for Nichols, who proposed it as a creative endeavor for a sabbatical. The deliverable for this sabbatical is a documentary on women musicians who have made a positive difference in society with their music.
Wood Newton moved from his home state of Arkansas to Nashville in 1976 to get into the music business. Since then, as a songwriter, Wood has written some of country music’s biggest hits. Among them are “Bobbie Sue” for the Oak Ridge Boys, “Twenty Years Ago” for Kenny Rogers, “What I Didn’t Do” for Steve Wariner and “Riding with Private Malone,” which he produced for David Ball. All four of these songs have received BMI awards for being played over a million times. He still maintains a studio in the historic RCA Studio A building on Music Row, where he continues to write, record and produce hits and the songs of others.
Wood produced and sang harmony with David Ball on “Old Folks at Home,” a track on “Beautiful Dreamer, The Songs of Stephen Foster.” It won a Grammy for Traditional Folk Album of the Year in 2005.
Wood served on the NSAI Board of Directors for many years and made several trips to Washington, D.C., in support of the songwriting profession.
Holly Celeste Fisk is a freelance writer in Los Angeles and a graduate of San Jose State University. She began her career in magazine journalism and transitioned to a 25-year career in B2B marketing. Holly serves as the PR Director for “She Sang.”
Grammy winner Robin Ruddy has built a thriving career in Nashville as a musician and entrepreneur, working as a songwriter, touring musician, session musician, recording studio owner and music producer. Robin has toured with Rod Stewart, Shania Twain, Ray Stevens and many others. She owns and operates The Parlor, a recording studio located in the heart of Music Row, which has been an integral part of the Nashville recording community since 2000. Robin is the film’s Music Director.
Sherri Lovrien is the production manager for this documentary. She graduated from Biola University with a degree in organizational leadership, which makes her perfect serving in a role that requires her to wear several hats. She and Dona Nichols have had a lifelong friendship that included attending lots of concerts and creating numerous music-related slide shows when they were roommates in their 20s.
Juan Serna is a talented videographer, filmmaker and broadcast producer. Juan is the studio engineer and manager of the state-of-the-art studio for the School of Journalism at San Jose State University.
Ralph Nichols has worked in the media and/or taught media studies for more than 40 years. He has taught journalism, photography and film studies as a tenured faculty member at Evergreen Valley College in San Jose since 1993. He also teaches mass communication classes at San Jose State University. Nichols trained for a career in media by working on newspapers from Carson City, Nevada, to Los Angeles, where he worked as a sportswriter at the Los Angeles Times.
She Sang 