5 Platforms Paving The Way For A Female-Led Industry
Gender equality is something women have been fighting for for centuries, no matters when it comes to having the right to vote, making decisions about their own bodies (e.g. abortions pro-choice/pro-live), being able to attend universities and obtaining an education, going to work or being paid equal salaries as men. While we for sure, have come a long way from a strictly patriarchal-lead society, gender inequality still remains highly visible in diverse sectors – including the music world.
Nowadays, female performers and music producers continue being vastly underrepresented in diverse areas of the music creation process as well as in other branches of the industry, and let me tell you – the women are getting quite sick of it.
According to Inclusion In The Recording Study that analysed music industry inclusion across the Billboard Hot 100 charts, only 23.3% of all the 180 artists on the Billboard Hot 100 Year-End Chart in 2021 were men and less than 1% of the 1000 most popular songs were written by female songwriters. While the world seems to be more feminine today, these numbers have not moved much over the last decade with female artists’ songs representing 21.8% over the past ten years among all the 1000 pieces on this chart.
However, music is not only about charts and awards but also about concerts and festivals. When it comes specifically to music festivals, the numbers are getting even more alarming and gender inequality may be more noticeable than in the other spheres of the industry. Just stop for a second and think about it – how often do you see a female artist headline a festival?
Based on Sky News research from April 2023, only about 18% of headliners at the UK’s festival this summer are women. “It’s about money at the end of the day and we still have old white men gatekeeping the industry,” says Eve Horne, a founder of Peak Music UK, a platform that leads female and nonbinary artists. It is sad to admit but Eve is right – for now. Female artists around the globe are tired of playing the side characters and not being given an equal opportunity to shine as male stars do, and they strive for a gender-fair environment. To cherish the female power, let’s have a look at 5 platforms that are paving the way for the female-led music industry.
Amplify Her Voice
Amplify Her Voice, founded in 2019 in Los Angeles, is an organisation that fights for equality in the music industry. Over just four years of its existence, this online platform has already grown by 35,000+ community members from all around the globe and established a partnership with major companies like Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, or The Recording Academy or collaborated with musicians such as MisterWives, The Naked and Famous, and The Aces.
This vibrant organisation support females’ career through diverse educational, networking, and creative opportunities by hosting regular events and programmes to advance working opportunities and female success in the music industry.
While the community obviously consist predominantly of woman, Amplify Her Voice also warmly welcomes all non-men and ally members of the music world. What is more, they provide and mediate incredible music internships, part-time roles, mentorships and volunteering opportunities across their partner organisations.
Therefore, if you are striving to start a career in the music industry, you may want to give Amplify Her Voice a look and explore the various opportunities they provide.
Girls Who Listen Inc.
As the name of this platform states, this one is about girls. Girls Who Listen (GWL) is a nonprofit organisation that is devoted to supporting female musicians, creatives, and executives in the music industry. These platforms specifically focus on new talents and voices entering the field, helping them to establish their name and build their careers.
GWL was founded in 2020 in New York City and their community has not stopped growing ever since. Over the three years of its existence, GWL has organised a great amount of industry-focused events such as panels, mingling mixers or songwriting sessions. They also gather an internal networking database for future professionals who are keen on learning more about the music industry.
On top of this, GWH provides several amazing programmes that help open those doors into the business. If you are a female university student, you may be interested in the Girls Who Listen University mentorship scheme that helps students gain hands-on experience in the field as well as build connections within the industry and work with mentors from companies such as SoundCloud, Genius, or Atlantic Records. A big part of the program is an opportunity to receive a generous scholarship so if you think you have what it takes, you should not hesitate and apply for one of their programs.
Besides helping the university students, GWL provides other opportunities how to participate, such as their new virtual series Girl Who Create last but not least, you can support the organisation by making a little donation.
Girls Who Listen University | Donate
She Is The Music
In January 2018, the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative published research on the music industry reporting a six-year low for female creators in the music industry. This alarming statistic was the final call for the founding members to start the She Is The Music (SITM) platform and work toward closing this gap.
Ever since 2018, SITM has been aiming to increase the number of women across the music industry from songwriters, engineers, producers, and artists to other various professionals within the field. This non-profit independent international organisation focused on uniting females in the industry and using the joined strength to make a difference on a global scale.
SITM provides several diverse programs such as all-woman songwriting camps hosted by established artists or mentorship programs in partnership with Step Up, and they also create an industry database of female creators. Their goal is to both support the women within the music industry today and encourage the growth of future generations.
If you are ready to boost your career in the music industry, SITM may be the right place to look for additional support and moreover, a place where you can become a part of a community of like-minded talented women.
Women in Music
While the majority of the female-supporting organisations within the music industry have been founded over the past few years, Women in Music (WIM) has been fighting for gender equality in the music world for almost three decades.
Founded in 1985, WIM is a non-profit organisation consisting of a vibrant group of talented individuals who support and serve female creatives around the globe – from LA to Japan.
During the almost thirty years of its existence, WIM has established its place within the music industry by holding a series of both in-person and virtual educational seminars, panels, networking events showcases, achievement awards and gala events.
If you wondering how to join the movement and support the fight toward gender equity in the music industry, you may consider making a donation, volunteering, becoming a member or maybe applying to be a featured speaker on one of the WIM’s events. If you are a company or organisation, you may be interested in hiring a WIM executive intern or becoming an ambassador. What is more, with WIM you can find both global and local opportunities by browsing their “Chapters” across the world!
Membership | Chapters | Events
shesaid.so
What started as a small project in London in September 2014, has since grown into a large diverse international community of women from various sectors of the music industry, such as record labels or PR and management, and more. With headquarters in London and LA, this network has chapters in 18 cities all around the world, including NYC, Paris, Berlin, and even Mumbai, and therefore, getting involved could not be any easier.
Shesaid.so is a platform that not only connects and empowers woman in the industry but importantly, concentrate on woman’s rights and building a safe space for all female and gender nonconforming people in music.
If this sounds like something you would want to become part of, there are many ways to join the movement. Maybe you could be interested in visiting some of the interactive seminars that shesaid.so organise, get involved in a 1-to-1 mentorship program, or what about becoming a member and actively participating in events and campaigns while collaborating with other global brands.
To date, shesaid.so consists of 12,000 members who share the same values of collaboration, diversity, inclusion and community – could this be your call to become one of them?
As the music industry remains vastly dominated by men, it is necessary for women to join hands and fight for gender equality together. Fortunately, there are numbers and numbers of platforms that are nowadays paving the way for a female-led industry.
If we want to see the change, we must take justice into our own hands – and what is a better way to start than joining a group of like-minded talented individuals?
