The organisers of Reading and Leeds Festival, FestivalRepublic, have faced criticism in recent years for their male dominated line-ups.
Melvin Benn, the managing director of Festival Republic, told the Guardian that the reason behind theirmale-centric line ups was because "they sell tickets... if there was afemale act in the rock genre that sold the same amount of tickets as any of theheadline acts... I'd book them".
The Leeds based 'ReBalance' project will run for three years
and each month will provide a female musician, solo artist or female fronted
band with a week in a recording studio, with all the expenses, travel and accommodation
paid for by Festival Republic.
However, is positive discrimination the best way to showcase
female talent and create a more equal music industry?
On one hand positive discrimination is viewed as a necessary
part of promoting female artists, so that they can break through the glass
ceiling.
Alternatively, positive discrimination can be viewed as PC
gone mad. Was Benn right in saying that the reason why men dominate the music
industry is simply because there's a higher demand for male artists and bands?
Or should we not take
gender into consideration and just focus on a musician's talent and the quality
of their music?
Rock duo Chambers, are one of the bands nominated for a
recording slot with ReBalance. Their drummer Eleanor Cara Churchill said: "Feminism
still has an important place in the music industry. It is a fact that men do
dominate the industry and female artists
have to fight harder to be taken seriously.
That's why it's so important to have projects like ReBalance
and all female festivals like Substance Live or Sisterhood, because it gives
women the time to shine and the opportunity to showcase their talent".
Natalie Sharp fronts the experimental synth-pop group 'Lone Taxidermist', who earlier this year performed at female orientated festivals: Substance Live and The Future is Female. Sharp believes that projects that positively discriminate towards women are a good way to raise awareness of the issues that women face in the music industry.
"2017 has been a funny year for me, almost every show
I've done has had a focus on gender or being a woman.
Admittedly positive discrimination is quite an extreme way
of doing something, but there is a point to it. There needs to be a more level
playing field", said Sharp .
Contemporary folk artist Sally Currie, a.k.a. The Dyr Sister,
agrees with Sharp believes that positive discrimination in music festivals and
projects "is a massive step in the
right direction".
She said: "It’s great that there are more opportunities
for women to show off exactly what they’re capable of. It's a sexist industry
and female orientated festivals are a great way to tackle the fact that all
female or female fronted bands are often overlooked".
One of the main issues women in music face is the pressure to use one's image or sexuality in order to become more marketable.
Jamie Otsa works as publicist at Wall of Sound PR and artist manager at Access Management and believes there is "a very unhealthy level of misogyny in the music industry" and that "feminism should be at the forefront" of the music industry, regardless of its competitive nature.
"I know women that have been discriminated against
when looking for employment, have been sexually, physically and mentally
abused, have been told they will never make it as an artist unless they are
willing to use their sexuality as a sales tool, have been told to change things
about their appearance, have struggled to be taken seriously, and have come up
against pay inequality disputes.
All this and much more simply because of their
gender.
I think one of the most toxic issues is that women who work in
music are still seen as 'groupies' by some men. They can’t possibly fathom that
there might be professional, capable women with agency who want to build a
career in an industry they are passionate about, rather than trying to sleep
with the bands.
I think it’s
important to understand that achieving equality doesn’t necessarily just mean
starting out with an equal platform for everyone. Some people need more support
than others. It’s important that women have spaces where they feel able to
express themselves and enjoy themselves without fear of alienation" said Otsa.
Doctor Brown's, a music venue in Middlesbrough, disagreeswith the notion of positive discrimination and recently implemented a ban on female fronted
bands, telling the Northern Echo that they believe that "women can't sing
rock".
The pub's manager Paula Rees, said that the ban was due to
the fact that her "customers don't like female fronted bands. It's not an
attack on female musicians, it's just that they don't bring big the crowds in".
Although Doctor Brown's ban on female fronted bands was
initially implemented to please her regulars and improve custom, it has actually
had the opposite effect. The decision has been very unpopular with the local
community, with many locals and bands boycotting the venue. Protesters gathered
outside the venue on December 21st 2017 and sang rock songs by female fronted
bands.
This arguably proves that representing female musicians is beneficial to a venue or music related business, as people were outraged at Doctor Brown's for openly admitting to not wanting to represent female musicians.
Musician and artist Sophie Ruth Ascough was one of the
organisers of the protest, stating that the ban was "terrible" and "made
no sense in 2017".
However Ascough also doesn't believe that positive discrimination is the best method for the music industry to become more inclusive, as it alienates non-binary people.
However Ascough also doesn't believe that positive discrimination is the best method for the music industry to become more inclusive, as it alienates non-binary people.
"I think to better represent women we need to give them
more of a platform. Make sure local gigs and festivals involve women and make
sure they are written about in local magazines and publications.
I've been in bands since I was 16 and honestly the way you are treated as a young female musician is nothing short of patronising.
You're either put in a pedestal for being a female musician or trashed because of it. I want to be referred to as a 'musician' or 'artist' without it always being prefixed by 'female'.
However, any discrimination scares me even if it's 'positive'.
I really like the idea of bringing women
to the front and actively making spaces where there are more women involved,
but the idea of an all female project or festival worries me too. I don't want
to discriminate against anyone, and I feel like an 'all female' project would definitely alienate people in the LGBTQ+ community who maybe identify as non
binary".
Mike Buchanan, head of the far right-wing political party 'Justicefor Men and Boys', believes that the positive discrimination towards women in
the music industry would have "an anti-meritocratic effect" on the
industry.
"The Campaign for Merit in Business published a report
on how there is a causal link between increasing female representation on
corporate boards and declining financial performances.
Therefore it is possible that the music industry could face
some serious issues if they implement gender quotas or carry on organising all
female festivals and gigs.
Plus the concept of an all female festival sounds rather tedious. Feminism is a gender supremacy movement which destroys families and wider society and belongs in the dustbin of society" said Buchanan.
Plus the concept of an all female festival sounds rather tedious. Feminism is a gender supremacy movement which destroys families and wider society and belongs in the dustbin of society" said Buchanan.
It's safe to say that there isn't a quick or easy solution
to the issues women face in the music industry. A single festival or project
isn't going to magically transform the industry. Ultimately, it is up to
consumers to decide which artists and bands sell records and therefore are
chosen to play festivals.
However the standard festival line up is very male-centric , so perhaps these extreme tactics are required in order to give female musicians the exposure that male musicians receive.
However the standard festival line up is very male-centric , so perhaps these extreme tactics are required in order to give female musicians the exposure that male musicians receive.
The majority of people support the notion of positive
discrimination towards women in music and projects like ReBalance. At the very
least ReBalance will inject 36 new releases from up-and-coming artists into the
market, and at most it'll help to break down barriers for women in music.
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