Alumna guitarist plays with no mind to industry expectations

Since she can remember, Poland-born musician Ania Thomas has been magnetically drawn to rock music. Mesmerised by the passion with which artists like Van Halen played, she became unable to take her eyes off the guitar. 

“Every time I saw someone play,” she said, “It was calling my name.” 

So, as the guitar called her name, she answered eagerly.

Now a seasoned guitarist, her body of work leaves listeners wondering what she can’t do as she shreds on the guitar with ease. Best demonstrated by her 2019 collaboration with Dutch guitar pick company ChickenPicks, Thomas composed and performed a piece that brings her abilities to the forefront. Opened by the pounding of drums, the scattered fragments of a guitar join the lone instrument with a sense of immediacy and power. It’s dark, it’s intense, it’s epic — leaving the listener feeling like they’ve walked into a battle against the final boss. 

In addition to her original work, Thomas creates bite-sized guitar covers, putting her own creative spin on everything from Metallica’s “Seek & Destroy” to Doja Cat’s “Like That.” She’s versatile and capable — and she’s only getting started.

A 2019 alumna of the Thornton School of Music majoring in studio guitar, the artist would close out her final year with the completion of her EP “Ania in Chains.” Her first EP, it was recorded entirely on campus with the help of other Thornton-based musicians. 

“That EP is not just one sound, it’s everything I was inspired by. Some of it is more rock, there’s more of an indie-rock track on there, [and a] dark indie pop song,” Thomas said. “Going to music school at USC has taught me to extend my borders and try different genres of music.” 

The EP features the dark-pop song “Poison,” a track accompanied by a psychedelic, daydream-esque music video. At the forefront of the track is the dynamic between Thomas’ siren-like vocals — smooth, graceful and haunting — and her gritty and powerful guitar playing, which together culminate into a raw yet beautiful display of emotion.

The recent project, recorded in 2019 and released in the following year, would be released in the middle of a global pandemic — unknown to her and the rest of the world at the time. However, the timing of the release wasn’t completely discouraging. 

“I don’t think [the pandemic] affected the release of anything.” Thomas said. “It actually helped in a way – people were at home listening, they had nothing to do.”

While listeners were able to pick up new music just as they had before the pandemic, creating new music wouldn’t come as easily to musicians like Thomas. 

“Being a musician is like training for the Olympics — you have to [practice] everyday,” Thomas said. “During the pandemic there was a dark time where … it was hard for [me and my musician friends] to stay on top of it because, if there’s no gigs coming up, what are we training for?” 

In face of a pandemic, the multi-talented artist wouldn’t be pinned down for too long. Determined and unquestionably hard working, Thomas didn’t sit still, choosing to navigate the difficult position by channeling her creative energy into an alternative outlet: songwriting.

“I think [the pandemic] pushed me toward writing a lot,” Thomas said. “I was very creative, and I tried to write and push boundaries.” 

Resilient, defying the odds, persisting despite the unexpected — it comes as anything but unfamiliar to Thomas. One of the few women in her major during her time at USC, the guitarist rose above the expectations placed upon her on the basis of gender. 

“Being a female, we have to deal with the judgement and stereotypes that come about us in the workforce,” said Thomas. “Unfortunately, the way it is in music and rock music, it’s always been a male dominant lead industry, and you always have to prove yourself. A lot of people will put you down and test you and challenge you, but you have to know how to keep it to yourself and not take it personally … Sometimes women have to go outside, even deeper.” 

She wanted to be known as more than “just the girl that plays guitar”— she wanted to be known by her colleagues as a guitarist and a capable one. She pushed herself, putting in hours upon hours to show that, not only was she as capable as the rest of her male classmates, she was a force to be reckoned with. 

Thomas doesn’t shy away from the difficulties she’s faced as a female guitarist — she’s unapologetic, proud and determined to be part of a change in the music industry. 

Whether she’s using her social media platform to dispel stereotypes about women guitarists and encourage aspiring female musicians, or performing at and managing the social media of Gritty in Pink, an all-girl concert series featuring female musicians from the Los Angeles area, Thomas takes the pursuit of equality within the music industry to heart.

“She takes a lot of inspiration from female-fronted rock bands,” said Mica Nafshun-Bone, Thomas’ colleague and fellow Thornton alumna. “She’s all about bringing girls to the forefront of the music industry … She’s kind of a feminist icon.”

Nafshun-Bone’s admiration for the guitarist can be traced back to one of their first encounters.

“She [was] in the sound booth behind the board,” Nafshun-Bone said. “Normally, you’d find a bunch of dudes behind the board, but she was one of the only few females behind the board. I thought that was super badass.”

Being one of the few women behind the board hasn’t always come with ease, but Thomas has stayed true to herself; she doesn’t bend to the words of others, letting confidence, kindness and hard work guide her. This authenticity is what makes her unique, both as an artist and colleague, said Marty Cooper, a 2020 graduate.

“I think that there are a lot of people in the music industry that will put up a front,” Cooper said. “But Ania’s never been the type to do that. She’s always been 100% doing her own thing.”  

As her colleagues, professors and peers will attest to, Thomas is a trailblazer, paving a path for female musicians of the future to follow.  

“In the end, you know, trusting your senses and your instincts and, you know, doing the best you can and really pushing yourself forward has really taught me [everything].” Thomas said. “You have to put in the work for anything you do.”