Joins Big Brother & The Holding Company

After hearing from Chet Helms that a band in San Francisco, Big Brother & The Holding Company, is looking for a lead singer, Joplin goes for an audition. Sam Andrew, a member of the band, remembers how they were impressed with her voice and starts to do gigs with her. She also learns to adjust her voice with the band and develops the singing style she is known for. Andrews:

At first, she had a coffeehouse kind of voice – real big and wide and open, like an acoustic instrument almost. As she got to play with us, she learned how to be an electric singer. We played so loud that she had to compete, so that’s when she started screaming. But she was always very musical.