Danielle Stampe is a singer, dancer, set designer, and performance artist, best known for her work with Gwar as "Slymenstra Hymen." She has set records for

fire breathing Fire breathing, fire-breathing, firebreathing, fire breather, or firebreather may refer to: * Fire-breathing monster, a mythological or fantastical monster able to breathe fire * Fire breathing (circus act) Fire breathing is the ac ...

and voltage endurance.

Early life

Danielle Stampe was born in San Diego on November 27, 1967. Her family moved to Virginia Beach, Virginia where she attended high school before moving on to Virginia Commonwealth University to study Fine Art. It was there that Stampe met Dave Brockie of the band Gwar.

Slymenstra Hymen and Gwar

Stampe joined Gwar in 1988 and developed the Slymenstra Hymen character. Stampe (as Hymen) contributed backup vocals on most Gwar albums during her time with the band. Slymenstra and

Oderus Urungus David Murray Brockie (August 30, 1963 – March 23, 2014) was a Canadian-American musician, who was the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Gwar, in which he performed as Oderus Urungus. He performed as a bassist and lead singer in the b ...

are featured in a duet titled "Fire in the Loins," on the '' RagNaRok'' album. "Don't Need A Man," written by Michael Derks and appearing on ''Carnival Of Chaos'', was the first Gwar song to feature Slymenstra solo on lead vocals. "My Girly Ways," featured on ''

We Kill Everything ''We Kill Everything'' is the seventh album by Gwar, released on April 6, 1999 through Metal Blade Records. Story The album's story differs slightly from the version told in "It's Sleazy" and on tour. The first three tracks on the album do not ...

'', featured Slymenstra in what would be the character's final song as a lead vocalist. Stampe left Gwar in 2000 but returned for one final tour with the group in 2002.

Sideshow work and world records

In 1992, Stampe moved to New York City. In 1995, along with Ula and Sharka of the Pain-Proof Rubber Girls, she helped in creating the Girly Freak Show, a performance troupe where she could be seen performing sideshow acts such as fire spinning and breathing, bullwhip, sword ladder walking, glass walking, eating lightbulbs, the Fiji mermaid, fire fan dance, burlesque tassle twirler, and the Miss Spidora illusion. After performing the act in clubs, it moved on to touring nationally as part of the 1996

Lollapalooza Lollapalooza (Lolla) is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991 but several years later made Chicago the permanent location for the annual music festival. Musi ...

tour. After Lollapalooza, many of the performers moved on to other projects and Girly Freak Show came to an end. Stampe moved to Los Angeles in 1996 and after leaving Gwar in 2000, she revived the Girly Freak Show, for which she was granted the naming rights by Ula and Sharka. Stampe also performed her sideshow act, often under the pseudonyms Danyella De Meaux and Miss Electra, as a member of the Brothers Grim Sideshow as well as with The Velvet Hammer Burlesque and Lucha VaVoom, the wrestling/burlesque show. During these appearances, she could often be seen performing "Don't Need A Man" live. Stampe holds several world records for fire breathing and human endurance of high-voltage electricity. These feats have led to her appearances on numerous television shows, including ''

Ripley's Believe It or Not! ''Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' is an American franchise founded by Robert Ripley, which deals in bizarre events and items so strange and unusual that readers might question the claims. Originally a newspaper panel, the ''Believe It or Not'' feat ...

'', ''

Guinness World Records Primetime ''Guinness World Records Primetime'' (AKA ''Guinness Primetime'') is a TV show based on the ''Guinness World Records'', and aired on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox television network from July 27, 1998, to October 4, 2001. It was hosted by Cr ...

'', and ''Wild West Tech''. She has been a performer at

Knott's Scary Farm Knott's Scary Farm or Knott's Halloween Haunt is a seasonal Halloween event at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. It is an event in which the theme park is transformed into "160 acres of horror", via a series of roaming monsters, terri ...

, the annual Halloween event held at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California.

Film set and home design work

Stampe works on set design for film and music videos, most notably for performers Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj. She is also the owner of an interior and exterior home design company named Wrapt In Comfort.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stampe, Danielle American women singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers American women heavy metal singers Living people Gwar members 1966 births Pigface members