Humankind’s story unfolds pretty much the same way. As soon as we’re born, we commence our gradual crawl towards the grave. We inevitably grow older, weaker, lumpier.
Sure, along the way there are shining, brilliant moments of vitality. But as the weight of the years piles on, many of us fall into the rut of routine and the creative lights start to dim. This seems to be the case for everyone — well, everyone except Dorothy Martin.
Each year, the fiery frontwoman of eponymous hard-rock band Dorothy seems to gain more life with every breath. She is about as exuberant and alive as a shaken-up soda, and that energy explodes over her music as Dorothy — no more so than on her new and fourth album, The Way, a spiritually awakened, soul-stirring collection of high-powered rock & roll.
That next-level energy was stoked, in part, by producer Scott Stevens, who also produced and recorded “Rest in Peace” and “Black Sheep,” two standout tracks from Dorothy’s previous high-octane record, 2022’s Gifts From the Holy Ghost. “I was like, This is my partner in crime, he’s got to do the next album,” Martin says over a Zoom call. “I feel like it was the right decision because wow, this album feels really fiery. It’s heavier than anything I’ve done. It’s alive.”
A Roc Nation signee and musical descendent of Joan Jett and Chrissie Hynde, Dorothy has spent the past decade taking us all to church with her songs of spiritual urgency, delivered through unapologetically bombastic rock & roll. Since forming the project in 2014, the crowds keep getting bigger and the co-signs flashier — as Dorothy’s music continues to climb higher and higher on the Rock Radio charts.
Martin’s shared stages with Halestorm, Disturbed, Godsmack, Greta Van Fleet, Creed and more, and captivated mainstream sports fans with her performances of the national anthem at Rams and Lakers games. She’s also collabed with icons, including Slash (on The Way’s “Tombstone Town”), Scott Stapp (on the Creed singer’s solo song “If These Walls Could Talk”) and Dolly Parton (on “Two Doors Down” from the Dumplin’ soundtrack). All of which is to say, Martin is quickly establishing herself as one of hard rock’s most unmissable performers.
Dorothy’s super-charged era began with Gifts From the Holy Ghost, which marked a clear shift in direction and purpose for Martin. The album emerged from the singer’s renewed spirit after two profound, life-changing events: her guitar tech’s near-fatal heroin overdose — Martin says he was revived after she, her manager and a sound engineer prayed over him — and her own experience of hitting rock bottom, finding spiritual enlightenment and getting sober. She continues her journey of spiritual and musical reinvigoration with The Way.
Dorothy’s music, especially on the new album, is itself a regenerative spirit, one intent on bringing its listener to life. It doesn’t just hold your hand — it grabs you by the collar and leads you towards divine consciousness.
Revolver spoke to rock’s cowboy hat-wearing reverend about the transformative journey that led her to The Way — the best, and heaviest, Dorothy album yet.
Each of your albums successfully levels up its energy. What was your plan for outdoing yourself this time?
DOROTHY MARTIN I knew I wanted screaming. Double bass. Really heavy guitars. We just played up all of those elements more, but also added a little bit of Southern rock. There’s some Southern-fried seasoning on some of these songs. And it’s because I grew up teaching myself to sing with country music and blues. I love bands like Creedence Clearwater Revival, so it felt natural to me. I just love those elements: the dobros, the slide guitars. I was like, “Can you make the sound of cicadas in the background, so we can really transport the listener to a world in the sonic landscape?” So I think we got a little more theatrical and fun.
You have this outlaw-country vibe with a slightly heavier palette. How did you land on that combination?
I love that outlaw-country reference, because if I was going to do country music, I would do outlaw country. I already have several cowboy hats. I like to shoot guns, you know what I’m saying? And I like to listen to that kind of music and storytelling. Those elements were kind of already there. If you go back to [Dorothy’s 2016 debut] ROCKISDEAD, there’s harmonica and slide guitar and a swampy Southern flavor. And I feel like rock and country could be sister genres. But of course, as always, we keep it hard rock because that’s in my DNA and it’s the core of this band. We are a hard rock & roll band, and we don’t ever want to walk away from that.
What makes you so dedicated to the rock genre? Are you intentionally trying to keep it alive?
That’s just who I am. Growing up, I was buying all the genres and subgenres of rock and metal. I was the middle school kid and teenager that was going to the record store and buying everything from Nirvana and Metallica to Creed and Audioslave albums. I’ve never forgotten my childhood or teenage self. For me, I’ve just always resonated with more aggressive music for some reason.
Do you think Dorothy is a way to explore your inner child?
Oh, for sure, and to heal my inner child — and to reach out to other people, no matter what age they are, whether they are kids or teenagers. Because that’s such a tough time growing up to figure out life, and especially now, it’s just getting crazier. When I was growing up, we didn’t have filters, we didn’t have access to thousands of people on TikTok and social media. So, it’s tough for these kids.
What would you tell your kid self if you could speak to her now?
I would say everything’s going to be alright. And keep searching for the truth. Stay true to who you are and don’t let the world corrupt your soul. Stay true, stay pure because we have bad things happen in life and we can choose to turn to the dark side, or we can choose to use it for good. That’s a big theme on this album, turning away from the dark side.
Your previous album, Gifts From the Holy Ghost, seemed to mark the start of your own spiritual journey. Where are you currently on that path?
Yeah, that was the beginning. And now the further I’ve walked down this road the more that’s been revealed. I’m further along in my journey on planet Earth. I feel like I’ve gained experience and wisdom, and I definitely have changed a lot as a human being. I don’t even recognize who I was just a few years ago. I just want to continue to evolve and grow spiritually alongside other human beings. I’m all about team humanity. I believe in people, and I believe that no one’s too far gone and that they can turn it around. They just have to be willing and they have to want to.
By the sounds of this album, you’re still in touch with a bit of your own self-destructive side…
Well, I’ve learned tools to cope with it. And if it wasn’t for my self-destructive side, I probably wouldn’t have been asking the big questions. I’m a firm believer that what was meant for your harm, God will turn for your good. And so I’ve made peace with all my mistakes and I try to walk the walk as I’m in recovery.
We try to keep our side of the street clean and be accountable for our decisions and actions. And when we’re wrong, we promptly try to make it right, so you’re not carrying that burden the rest of your life. I try to stay out of resentment and stay in gratitude and prayer and look towards the future and how I can be of service to humanity as a whole and what I was put here to do. It’s a much better way to live than to give in to that self-destructive side and kind of be lost in that selfish, self-destructive way of living. I hit rock bottom and it’s not an option anymore. It’s just not how I want to, or can, live my life. So I don’t regret my mistakes. I don’t regret any of the bad things that I’ve had to walk through. I try to find the silver lining and ask, “How can I use this to help someone else?”
How would you like your music to be in service of humanity?
I want to give them a sense of hope. Lift up their spirits. Take their hand. Pull them out of the darkness and let them know there’s a better way. If I can do it — and my friends who’ve gone through hell can do it — you can do it too.
You said that you don’t even recognize the person you were a few years ago. What were the biggest changes you’ve gone through since then?
Well, I hit rock bottom in my recovery in sobriety. I really had to surrender my will and my life to God. Since then, I feel like I’ve had a huge shift in my character. I’m more self-reflective. More willing to admit when I’m wrong. I’ve gotten humbled and that can be painful — but I’m glad because it’s not good to walk around arrogant and prideful and have these blind spots of your character defects. And listen, I’m not a saint. But I guess I’ve become less selfish, more patient and just more surrendered.
There was a certain event that really inspired the last album: your guitar tech’s brush with death. Was there an event that was as crucial to this album?
Yeah, there’s been a series of events and it all ties together. He did have a near-death experience. Actually, I think he actually died and came back. He had overdosed on heroin.
And I ended up in rehab in October of 2020, then I got saved and then I got baptized. My eyes were opened to a whole other level of what’s going on here. I believe that spiritual warfare is real. I’ve seen things I can’t really explain with my own eyes. Half the people reading would agree. And then the other half haven’t had their eyes opened and are kind of asleep, or don’t believe that it’s real and are kind of shut off. That’s OK, too. You have to accept where everyone’s at. But I’ve seen too much, and I can’t help but write about it in my songs. I think it’s great material to write about anyway.
What have you seen?
Oh my goodness. Well, praying over the boy who overdosed on our tour bus, there was an act of God that happened. I mean, everybody could feel this tangible, powerful presence. It was loving. He was brought back, and we prayed over him. So I just say never underestimate the power of prayer. I’ve seen some things that might be a little scary to some people that I can’t truly explain. But, you know, I’m not the only one. I think I’m in very good company.
You’ve supported some of the biggest rock bands in the country. What have you learned during those experiences?
Oh man, I mean, everyone in the rock community has been so supportive and kind to me. I’ve had nothing but a really wonderful experience because our community feels like family. One of the first big bands that took us out was Halestorm. And then I went out with the Struts and Greta Van Fleet. Everyone was so kind and sweet.
Then we went out with Three Days Grace and Breaking Benjamin, and those were big shows. It was a very long tour. So, I think it made a road warrior out of me, to be out on these long tours. And man, these guys work so hard. You spend your whole life touring and, in a sense, it’s not very stable. Your body goes through a lot because you’re constantly traveling, and it can run you down. But at the end of the day, I feel like this is what we’ve all been called to do.
Speaking of big rock stars, Slash makes a guest appearance on The Way’s “Tombstone Town.” You also sang on “Key to the Highway” from his 2024 record, Orgy of the Damned. What was it like working with him this time?
I’m incredibly honored that Slash took the time to be a part of “Tombstone Town.” It was a fun experience. He added so much fire to the song, and it was great to catch up with him again. He has been a great source of encouragement to me on my music journey. I’m always amazed at how humble and cool he is. I look up to Slash like a big brother.
You’ve been on this spiritual journey for a while now, in some way your career is even defined by it. Your 2016 song, “Medicine Man” was inspired by seeing a shaman, right? Could you tell me some more about that?
Yes. I was definitely searching. And now when I think about those lyrics, it’s so funny because they applied to my life from a real experience I had down in Mexico City. We went to the Sun Pyramid with a tour guide. When we got up to the top, the guide looked at us and said he’d never seen anything like this before: There were all of these white butterflies that just started flying around us. It’s funny, because I’d been praying about butterflies. And then I told that story to my manager and he started crying because it touched him. And then we ended up seeing a shaman who did white Santería. I also ate crickets. I wanted to have the whole experience, I guess. But then I think about it now, and I go, Hey, you know what? Jesus could be the Medicine Man I’m describing in my lyrics. He did miraculous healings. It just took me getting to know his story to make that connection.
You’ve also been making the rounds singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” during halftime shows. How’s that experience been for you?
That’s been really fun. You know, they don’t pay you, it’s just an honor to sing the national anthem. And it’s nerve-wracking because it’s not easy to sing. The Rams game in L.A. was great. I did one for the L.A. Lakers. I would love to sing the national anthem at the Super Bowl one day.
How do you even prepare to sing the national anthem?
Well, I try to aim high: I sing the Whitney Houston version in the shower over and over until it’s muscle memory. I definitely don’t come close to her. But I’m trying to aim high so that I land somewhere decent.
Do you ever practice screaming in the shower?
I don’t practice as much as I should. I actually figured out by accident how to do that in the studio. And I looked at my producer Scott and I said, “Did you capture that? Tell me that you were recording, please.” He had. And then we messed with it a little more and got it right for the song. It’s funny, I was like, I want to try something new with my voice today, and it kind of just happened after hours of singing. It had warmed up enough to the point where it seemed easy. Then I went and researched it and started watching videos and tutorials on how to actually do it. It’s a lot different than I expected it to be. People think it must hurt your voice. But you’re using vocal fry, it’s just a technique. But a secret that people don’t want to tell is how hard it is to go from clean, regular vocals to screaming, to switch gears like that. So live, I think there’s some tricks with tracks or having someone else in the band scream. We have to figure out how to do that because I’m belting and I’m using clean vocals live so much that I have to figure out how to incorporate that.
Have you been able to recreate that first scream that you did by accident?
Yeah, yeah. If I work on it and I warm up and I figure out how it feels, then the muscle memory comes back. I don’t want to go out there and go, “Hey, I’m a screamer now.” But it was a fun element that we added to this record. My producer’s got a great scream too.
Were you in a certain mood that brought out the scream?
Well, my producer played me the track for “MUD,” and I was like, “Dude, why didn’t you show me this earlier?” It was this crazy wild-card song, and it seemed fitting to scream on it.
How do you maintain your energy in the studio and on tour?
Everything’s very physical, I feel like my job is 24-7 because staying in shape and training is part of it. I run. I do Muay Thai and mixed martial arts. Anything I can do to challenge myself so that I’m in good shape is part of the game. Sometimes you just drink extra coffee, and you need to pop vitamins and eat more calories. And sometimes if it’s not happening that day, you just take a break and do it another day.
We’re still a few months out from The Way’s release. How are you feeling at this stage, when all you can do is wait?
Well, I think we’re really doing it right this time. I’ve lined up several songs to kind of slow-drip out to the public and keep them anticipating [the album] — hitting them with something new and exciting with each release. The timing is perfect. I can just see it.