Drummer Nandi Bushell picked to feature in Rebel Girls series

A 12-year-old girl has been featured in a new children's book among a stellar line-up of music legends including Dolly Parton and Bjork.

Drumming prodigy Nandi Bushell, of Ipswich, Suffolk, has performed with the Foo Fighters, brought out her own song and won a host of famous fans.

She appears in the latest edition of the Rebel Girls series, released in the week of International Women's Day.

Nandi said: "I was super excited because I always read the books."

She found out she was to be included in Rebel Girls Rock three months ago alongside folk star Joni Mitchell, K-Pop group Black Pink and Grammy award winner Lizzo.

"It makes me really proud to know that I'm inspiring other children," said Nandi about the book, released on Thursday and featuring a foreword by rocker Joan Jett.

The South African-born schoolgirl, who moved to Ipswich aged two, attracted the attention of publishers due to her passion, youth and list of notable musical feats.

Last September, Nandi performed at Wembley for the Foo Fighters' memorial gig in tribute to their late drummer Taylor Hawkins.

She played with the drumsticks Hawkins gave her when she appeared with the band in Los Angeles in 2021.

Nandi was first invited to appear with them after challenging frontman Dave Grohl to a drum battle, leading him to write her a song.

Four years ago she performed with Lenny Kravitz, and she has also appeared in the film Cinderella and US talk show Ellen.

Last year Nandi also brought out her first self-penned song, The Shadows, dedicated to her father John.

The book has prompted the multi-instrumentalist, who has about 2.5m social media followers, to think about the women who have inspired her.

"I look up to Sheila E because she was really inspirational to other women in a male-dominated industry," said Nandi.

"I also look up to Rayssa Leal, who is a Brazilian skateboarder.

"She is so incredible at skateboarding - she's really nice and she's so inspirational."

Her own words of advice to anyone looking to follow her lead in music was to "practise, practise, practise".

"You can do anything you put your mind to and just have fun and love what you're doing," added Nandi.

The Rebel Girls series, which launched in 2016, aims to highlight real-life tales of female success and resilience to girls and has sold 8.5m copies worldwide.

Rebel Girls CEO Jes Wolfe said Nandi's story had been picked for the book as she's "confident, passionate, fierce, and authentically herself".

"She pursues her passion for music relentlessly.

"She plays multiple instruments, is a songwriter and singer, and has performed at the largest of arenas in the UK - all by the age of 12.

"Nandi is a role model for all girls, and we couldn't imagine Rebel Girls Rock without her."

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