It is no secret that the world of music is predominantly dominated by the male gender, and of course it is no secret that sexism still exists within the music industry. 

With life resuming and festival season upon us, sexism to no surprise, is still a massive problem. One example of a festival that has been continuously dragged in the past continuously participated in sexism, is Reading & Leeds festival. The festival actively announced their line-up in 2020, which showed not one single artist that was that of a different gender. In fact, in 2019 – only 22% of the musical acts that played Reading and Leeds were female or non-binary. This year the festival got the thumbs up to go ahead in August 2021, however, the line-up has some improvement of inclusion of different genders, but again the balance has been ignored. 

The problem stems from the fact that this would not have been acknowledged, until people voiced their views. I’ve just used a festival for example, but the issue is much deeper than just festivals. Ex-Radio 1 presenter Annie Mac stated:

“There is under representation on every level of the music industry, from record label MD’s, to a&r, to song writing to the artists themselves. It’s just nowhere near equal.”

There are so many incredible artists that are female, trans and non-binary musicians such as: Nina Krarviz, Octa Octa and Auco to name a few. Yet, are they viewed and given the same recognition as male artists? Previously, Nina Kraviz voiced her experience in the industry by saying:

“PEOPLE WERE SUSPICIOUS OF A PRETTY WOMAN MAKING MUSIC ON HER OWN, WITH A VISION. THEY COULDN’T HANDLE ME. IT WAS LIKE: ‘IT CANNOT BE TRUE THAT YOU CAN HAVE LIPSTICK ON AND MAKE MUSIC.’”

There is a very large gap in the music world, however, the electronic clubbing music scene has grown to be more inclusive, diverse and exciting. Female, trans and non-binary individuals are being allowed to express themselves openly through their creative work – whether this be music or something entirely different.  

Although it is men are known to ‘dominate’ the music industry, women actually represent the music industry more. According to ‘the music industry report’ women comprise 51.2% as opposed to the 47.7% of men. With this in mind it is surprising that women, trans and non-binary aren’t being treated fairly or equally.

There is no question that women, trans and non-binary people are shadowed in the industry and aren’t given the same equality or fairness as male gendered individuals. The only way this will change is for society to change their attitudes, beliefs and views. However, this can only happen when society begin to respect women, trans and non-binary individuals as a whole and not just in the music industry, but in every aspect of life. When women, non-binary and trans women are treated fairly and equally, then will the problem begin to resolve.