Why We Need to Support Women in Rock
I suppose I should start this post off by sharing that I am a feminist, and as a self-proclaimed feminist, I am utterly ashamed to admit that my music library is made up mostly of male musicians and mostly (if not completely) male bands.
This statement means no discredit to those male musicians/bands, because they are all badass in their own right and have earned their success, but it brought my attention to something that is glossed over very often in music, and especially in traditionally male-dominated genres, such as rock and alternative: women are severely underrepresented.
Let’s do a quick exercise: I want you to think of some of your favorite bands/artists. I’ll tell you some of mine.
Soundgarden. Greta Van Fleet. Hozier. Red Hot Chili Peppers. Muse.
I don’t think I need to point out to you what all of these artists have in common.
As I previously mentioned, some of this is because the genre is traditionally male-dominated, as far as the musicians and the listeners go,
I read an article in the Washington Post that stated that only 7.7% of inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame are women¹, and the question is why? There are plenty of female artists and bands in the rock industry, and yet they hardly get the recognition that they deserve. Whether on the charts or at festivals, there is a stark deficiency in female presence.
When I think of successful women in rock, I think of Janis Joplin, Tina Turner, and Pat Benatar, and while all of these women should have their photograph next to the definition of badass in the dictionary, they all also hit their peak between 1960 and 1990. Why is there such an absence of women in modern rock?
Personally, I think that with the introduction of streaming, listeners have a broader access to an extensive variety of music, and that has caused the music industry to change significantly. The Top 40 and Top 100 charts have had to adapt to take into account the variety of streaming services that are offered now, such as Spotify, Apple Music, and countless others.
Plainly put, there is easier access to a variety of different music; this can be very good for female artists, as they have more of a chance of having their music heard without being smothered by the industry. However, on Spotify, which is my preferred streaming service, they have curated playlists that are similar to what the Top 40 charts may look like, but are often separated by genre, decade, or “mood”. These playlists are curated by those who work at Spotify, which means they are still under some type industry restriction.
As a woman who is so interested in the mechanics of the music industry, this is disheartening. I can imagine how female rock musicians may be fed up with constantly being asked about what it feels like to be “a woman in rock”, but the fact of the matter is that there is still underrepresentation in the genre when there shouldn’t be.
So, if you’ll excuse me, I have some research to do on who is going to be my new favorite, female musical artist. I suggest you do the same.
¹: Washington Post Article Referenced
This statement means no discredit to those male musicians/bands, because they are all badass in their own right and have earned their success, but it brought my attention to something that is glossed over very often in music, and especially in traditionally male-dominated genres, such as rock and alternative: women are severely underrepresented.
Let’s do a quick exercise: I want you to think of some of your favorite bands/artists. I’ll tell you some of mine.
Soundgarden. Greta Van Fleet. Hozier. Red Hot Chili Peppers. Muse.
I don’t think I need to point out to you what all of these artists have in common.
As I previously mentioned, some of this is because the genre is traditionally male-dominated, as far as the musicians and the listeners go,
I read an article in the Washington Post that stated that only 7.7% of inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame are women¹, and the question is why? There are plenty of female artists and bands in the rock industry, and yet they hardly get the recognition that they deserve. Whether on the charts or at festivals, there is a stark deficiency in female presence.
When I think of successful women in rock, I think of Janis Joplin, Tina Turner, and Pat Benatar, and while all of these women should have their photograph next to the definition of badass in the dictionary, they all also hit their peak between 1960 and 1990. Why is there such an absence of women in modern rock?
Personally, I think that with the introduction of streaming, listeners have a broader access to an extensive variety of music, and that has caused the music industry to change significantly. The Top 40 and Top 100 charts have had to adapt to take into account the variety of streaming services that are offered now, such as Spotify, Apple Music, and countless others.
Plainly put, there is easier access to a variety of different music; this can be very good for female artists, as they have more of a chance of having their music heard without being smothered by the industry. However, on Spotify, which is my preferred streaming service, they have curated playlists that are similar to what the Top 40 charts may look like, but are often separated by genre, decade, or “mood”. These playlists are curated by those who work at Spotify, which means they are still under some type industry restriction.
As a woman who is so interested in the mechanics of the music industry, this is disheartening. I can imagine how female rock musicians may be fed up with constantly being asked about what it feels like to be “a woman in rock”, but the fact of the matter is that there is still underrepresentation in the genre when there shouldn’t be.
So, if you’ll excuse me, I have some research to do on who is going to be my new favorite, female musical artist. I suggest you do the same.
¹: Washington Post Article Referenced
Comments
Post a Comment