Julie Gidlow
Author | Journalist | Rocker Chick
What happens when a lifelong music fan suddenly finds herself at the center of a rockstar fantasy?
Behind the Setlist: Confessions of a Non-Groupie follows Mia, a diehard concertgoer whose encounter with a one of her favorite musicians takes a very unexpected turn.
About the Author
Julie Gidlow is a journalist, copyeditor, blogger, and former News Editor of Radio & Records. A Los Angeles native who grew up in the '80s listening to legendary radio station KROQ-FM, she proudly claims an encyclopedic knowledge of classic alternative music and is still trying to get over finishing second on Rock & Roll Jeopardy!
Behind the Setlist: Confessions of a Non-Groupie is her fiction debut. Drawing on nearly two decades covering the music industry, Julie brings authenticity to the concert venues, backstage dramas, and larger-than-life personalities that fill its pages. She spent 17 years at R&R, joining the influential music-industry trade publication shortly after earning her master’s degree in journalism from USC. From 1997 until the magazine ceased publication in 2009, she served as News Editor, overseeing coverage during one of the most dynamic eras in the music business.
Julie later brought her research and editorial expertise to an investment management firm before returning to her first professional love—writing about music. Her years covering artists, radio, concerts, and industry trends provided rich inspiration for Behind the Setlist.
When she‘s not writing, attending concerts, or correcting other people’s grammar, Julie enjoys competing in an adult figure skating league, judging regional skating events, and shopping at Trader Joe’s. A self-professed radio geek, she remains convinced that her ability to name that tune in one note will eventually pay off.
Behind the Story of Behind the Setlist
For years, Mia Browne has admired him from a distance.
As a music journalist, she's interviewed rock stars, attended countless concerts, and collected enough backstage stories to fill a book. She's met music legends and more than a few oversized egos, but this particular artist has always been different. His songs have been the soundtrack to her life. His band has earned a permanent place on her playlists.
Then one unexpected encounter changes everything.
He reaches out in a way she never saw coming, and what begins as a flattering and intriguing exchange soon becomes something else entirely.
Suddenly, Mia has a front-row seat to the gap between image and reality. The questions become more personal. The conversations become more complicated. And the man she's respected for decades begins to reveal a side of himself she never expected to see.
The music hasn't changed. But everything else has.
Filled with humor, heart, and authentic insider details from the music industry, Behind the Setlist is a witty and entertaining look at fandom, self-discovery, and whether the people we idolize can ever live up to the stories we create about them.