What music videos are like for women everyday, ha!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKNcuTWzTVw
How’d ya like those apples? Two wrongs clearly make a right or maybe she is just making a point! I also think the song is cool! Love Marina! She’s a Diamond! đ
Disgruntling to say the least to see people miss the point entirely when it comes to the issue of gender inequality, I think a bit empathy and insight into what it’s actually like for a women would go a long way in this male dominated world and music industry! Hopefully I can achieve this even in a small way through my blog and people will become a bit more informed in general and be more empathetic! If you document examples of everyday sexism, that does not make you sexist, what kind of rubbish do people spout?! *Facepalm! You know, just cuz something which is shitty that exists which is not part of your daily reality doesn’t mean that it does not exist for others! Don’t take your privilege for granted! Peace!
Here is an area where women can get some of the grievances that they face on a daily basis in the music industry off of their chests in a very safe and supportive environment! Vent away girls, we are all in this together and am trying to come to a solution to eradicate this bullshit that we face!
Very juxtaposing evening of being street harassed by a guy outside of BIMM, followed by a lovely song-writing workshop given by a lovely lady inside, the ying and yang of society! Ignorance versus education!
#genderequalityinthemusicindusry.wordpress.com âȘ#âeverydaysexismâŹ
(Am not trying to create division btw! Just pointing out the evening that I had and how polar opposite that it was init!)
Youâre already familiar with her badass vocals on tracks like Iggy Azaleaâs âFancyâ, and her own summer smash anthem âI Love Itâ. British singer Charli XCX is a force to be reckoned with and is taking the world by storm, touting feminism as one of her banner issues along with her music.
Charli is not the lone female wolf in the music industry who stands for feminism and who has spoken out about the discriminatory sexist ways female artists are treated. Bjork, Grimes and Nicki Minaj are just a few notable names who have detailed their own experiences being treated in a manner that would be standard fare amongst men.
In her HBO Documentary âLife is But A Dreamâ BeyoncĂ©Â talks about the inspiration to her girl power smash âGirls (Run The World)â saying the treatment of women in the music industry and elsewhere in the world is what the song points to.
â Women have to work much harder to make it in this world. It really pisses me off that women donât get the same opportunities as men, or money, for that matter. Because lets face it, money gives men the power to run the show. It gives men the power to define our values, and to define whatâs sexy, and whatâs feminine, and thatâs bullshit! At the end of the day its not about equal rights, its about how we think. We have to reshape our own perception of how we view ourselves. We have to step up as women and take the lead, and reach as high as humanly possible. Thatâs what Iâm gonna do, thatâs my philosophy. And thatâs what âGirlsâ is all about,â she said.
And of course her famous pose in front of a massive âFeministâ sign at the 2014 VMAs squashed all doubts about what she stands for.
But it seems there is a movement among women speaking out about the injustices they face, and Charli has now added her voice to this in a prominent way. In a documentary for BBC3 called “The F Word and Me”, she interviews other artists such as Marina and the Diamonds singer Marina Lambrini Diamandis, Jack Antonoff from Bleachers (aka Lena Dunhamâs boyfriend), and singer Ryn Weaver to discuss what feminism means to them, and how it fits in within the current musical landscape.
âThe âF wordâ â thatâs feminism â is everywhere. Young kids are being blasting with what feminism is because BeyoncĂ©âs standing in front of a massive screen that says âfeminismâ on it. And thatâs great,â says Charli in the documentary.
She talks about the surge of girl-bands and girl power which we saw in groups such as The Spice Girls, but adds even they were reduced to stereotypes despite the seemingly empowering message. Today there is a generation of women breaking free from the trappings of the music industry trope of selling female artistry on sexuality alone, choosing to take control over their aesthetic to prove they can be empowered by other means.
Artists like Beyonce and Miley Cyrus are constantly fielding criticism and dividing many female opinions on whether they way they choose to present their sexuality and dress a certain way is empowering or still caving into the music industry, despite it being their decision.
One of the aspects of being a female artist that Charli takes issue with is constantly being asked âwhat it is like being a woman in the music industryâ which she discusses with Marina. The âFruitâ singer responds by basically saying it is a conversation still worth having.
âFor me itâs not annoying. I do still think itâs relevant. Actually asking the question has made the topic very popular. For me personally there are a lot of things that still have to happen for women in music,â she said.
Tackling the body image aspect of feminism in music in a different way, Charli chats with Ryn Weaver about choosing not to shave her armpit hair and how others like Madonna and Miley Cyrus have recently made bold statements doing the same thing. For these women including Ryn and Charli, they believe it sends a message to young girls, who are so used to looking at tabloid magazines and excessively photoshopped celebrities, that being beautiful and sexy doesnât have to be dictated by the media. The idea of self-directed body image and confidence in itself is a rebellious feminist statement going against the grain of conformity.
âFor young girls who grow up with People magazine, and OK [magazine] and porn, I think itâs really amazing,â says Charli.
âThis is the way youâre meant to look..you get to do whatever the hell you want to do with your own body because itâs your body and itâs not property of public domainâŠIt just makes you seem more human and makes [little girls] feel like [theyâre] allowed to be normal,â responds Ryn.
While image and fashion arenât altogether demeaning topics, itâs when women in the public eye are constantly reduced to beings whose only value revolves around that, by the constant narrow barrage of questions relating to physical appearance, that it becomes a problem and starts to send the wrong message to female fans. Charli says it has become a frustrating aspect of her career having to field questions like this.
âI donât really care about people who ask me what type of feminist I am or if I think itâs valid for me to be a feminist because I wear a short skirt. I think thatâs just a stupid, stupid, stupid conversation,â she said.
By contrast, her interview with Jack Antonoff allows a male perspective on this issue and the two talk about the blatant double standards dished out to women compared to men. The idea of a man being a producer and songwriter, as well as singer is pretty standard, but to see an uber successful woman in the same light is often harder.
âNo one wants to believe Taylor Swift writes the songs. And thatâs such crap,â he said about working with the âBad Bloodâ popstar.
Itâs more than just a feminist documentary, it is a challenging piece of pop culture insight that will hopefully help shape a generation of music fans and the way they look at female artists compared to men. The fight for female musicians to reclaim control over their public image while also being seen as legitimate as men who have gone against the grain and committed rebellious acts of non-conformity is ongoing, but fans have a crucial role to play.
Charli states that it is more important to focus on women as artists, rather than gendered beings who happen to play music. Perhaps then the issues of femininity in the music industry wonât be so problematic.
âBeing a woman and talking about being a woman in this specific industry is such a confusing and layered subject. Everyone is aware that this question of what itâs like to be a woman in the music industry is important, but everybody is also kind of sick of it. And I think that maybe the better question is âWhatâs it like to be an artist?’â she asks.
If you are in the UK you can watch the documentary on the BBC3 website, and for the rest of us here are a couple of clips shared online which you can watch below:
I am not a black woman and obviously I cannot understand the struggle that some people have and have faced but a lot of this speech resonated with me and I’m sure it will with everyone, we should all be ourselves and love ourselves and we should all be celebrated! I love this speech! Respect Rihanna!
You outta knowâŠthat Alanis Morissette is a feminist (see what I did there?). But she is not just any feminist, she is determined to see a revolution in the movement in order for it to be more powerful in the 21st century. Weâre all pretty familiar with the term being very polarizing these days. Many claim there is âno needâ for a movement that advocates for the social, political an economic equality of all genders.
Others, however, see there is still a growing and vital need for it. Intersectionality has become a massive focus for the modern movement, because issues relating to race and the LGBTQ community are being championed in many ways by feminism. Nevertheless, there is much work to be done to reach complete gender equality, and for the term to stop being such a polarizing issue.
In a powerful essay for Time magazine, Alanis says she considers it an honor to be a feminist, and that the concept of feminism is a âmandatory link in a chain toward wholeness, cohesion, maturation and functionality.â
âI do believe, however, that the definition of feminism needs some refocusing, redefining and updating for this modern time, and for this new generation, and that the movement deserves a reorienting, intentionality and re-envisioning for what is possible and how to get there. We need a revolution to the feminist revolution. And it needs to be brought to the fore of our awareness in order to heal what ails our times on this planet,â she begins.
The majority of the feminist movementâs existence has primarily been about breaking down the power of the damage inflicted by patriarchy, and often forces the feminine energy that has emerged from this movement to adhere to the structures of the patriarchal movement, rather than dismantling and starting a whole new perspective on power.
âThe patriarchy has always seemed an ignorant and emotionally immature purgatory at best, and, at worst, a despair-filled holding pattern carefully held together by resistance, hate, hostility and separatismâthe cost of which is felt across every area of life, in women and men alikeâŠPatriarchy may afford a false sense of power afforded to those who keep the hate in place, but that power is temporary and false, and it will never yield the peace and well-being that is not only possible but is every personâs birthright. The water of what is possibleâŠby embracing the feminine still rushes powerfully as the dam of patriarchy stays willfully (if not temporarily) frozen in place,â she writes.
She does point out that despite her well known track âYou Outta Knowâ off her album Jagged Little Pill, man-hating has never been her âthingâ. That song was about a personal break-up and did not in any way reflect her views on the entire male species, although that narrative was certainly forced upon her through the mainstream, she says. As an aside, we have to say how tragic it is that a strong woman unashamedly declaring her feelings out loud like Alanis should be synonymous with hating men. That is certainly an aspect of the movement which needs to be revolutionized!
âFeminism is incomplete without its dualistic brother, its complement, and, ideally, its greatest supporter: the empowered masculineâŠWhether this is indicated in our choices sexually, physically, emotionally, vocationally or artistically, we are moving ever closer to getting a real sense of who we are as humans based on where we fall on this continuum,â she said.
It is an idea that many feminists are starting to speak up about, needing male allies. It is also becoming a more recognized movement among men, recently the most famous of which was Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who boldly declares he is a feminist out loud on the world stage and says he will continue to do so until his comment is met with a shrug, as if it is the most normal thing in the world. Amen to that!
âThe delicate and powerful outcome of what happens when the feminine and the masculine work in tandem is what I am interested in,â says Alanis, while adding the violence still inflicted upon women around the world today, as well as LGBT community members and feminine men needs to end in order for anything aside from masculine to be considered powerful and equal.
âThere has been so much death, mutilation, annihilation, reduction, aversion and obliteration of the feminine and the female/feminine body as has been evidenced with female genital mutilation, sex trafficking, hyper-sexualisation in entertainment and pop culture, LGBT hate, unequal pay, lack of education about the female body, public shaming, bashing and bullying, and to know it is still happening across the planet on a daily basis is nothing short of soul-killing and archaic,â she said.
Alanis does mention the enormous strides being made for women, especially in the Western world.
âWomen can be presidents (if still frequently challenged on the basis of their gender) or CEOs (if still having had to work 10 times harder than men to get there) or movie stars (if still having to fight to earn anywhere near the same wage as their male co-stars), or play the natural roles that they were born to play with less resistance. Could this in fact beâŠtip-toeing toward the light at the end of the tunnel of unificationâŠ? Painstakingly slowly, to be sure,â she writes.
It is interesting that in parenthesis she equates patriarchy to the âdisempowered masculineâ, clearly identifying to her audience that patriarchal power also does great damage to men. It is also not a model that the feminist movement should copy as it continues to influence the world.
âIf the goal is less polarization and the greater acceptance of the masculine and the feminine qualities in all of us, then the goal being in sight might well be the gift that this new generation and new era is offeringâŠif patriarchy (disempowered masculine) relies on a silenced and reduced feminine (disempowered feminine), then true empowerment is an internal movement toward maturation and healing, and renewed defining of personal power and responsibility and a re-working of what it means to achieve success on this planet,â she said.
In a recent interview for an India literature festival, Egyptian feminist activist and author Mona Eltahawy expertly explained that feminism today is a very big threat to many men because their only knowledge of power is the top-down approach that patriarchal and dictatorship is built upon. But the feminist power comes from everyone, that means all genders, having an equal share of power and being afforded the space to live it out as they see best away from societal or structural limitations. It makes perfect sense, and once this notion of the different power structures becomes more common, it will go a long way to moving feminism forward.
âHating men for the oppression we as women have experiencedâŠjust keeps the gender and gender-quality divide ever entrenched. We must take our passion and energy for the lunacy of this reductivism and channel it toward change: addressing first, the egregious lack of celebration of the feminine and all feminine qualities; and second, and equally important, the redefinition of what empowerment looks like in the masculine,â Alanis continued.
She concludes by outlining some of the far-reaching effects around the world in a number of different industries are areas when each person on the planet is given permission to look at every part of themselves as empowered.
âWhen glimpses of a new way to live occur, it is truly a powerful and light-filled sight to behold. We have already seen it take shape in fits and starts in this new generation and in our culture: More fathers being supported. Fewer power-struggle-filled forms of parenting and relating. More emotional literacy. More masculine-oriented women having the careers that they have dreamed of since they were very young. More empowered men supporting empowered women. More diversity. More acceptance of personal lifestyle and sexual preference choices. More connection. More responsibility,â she said.
Words like âweaknessâ, âsubmissionâ and âvulnerabilityâ would in themselves be revolutionized to become terms that arenât necessarily negative.
ââWeaknessâ would be more respectfully associated with yielding (a deeply intuitive ability) or resting (an underrated action in todayâs work addicted world) or humility, with humility serving as a portal to our own sense of spiritualityâa lost goal in a world obsessed with industry and âmight being rightâ,â she said.
When we read her very wholistic and spiritual perspective on the benefits of advancing feminism, we canât help but will it into existence across the world now. As Alanis did mention in her piece, there are slow advances being made, but every one of us is responsible for either maintaining the status quo, sending us back in time to a power structure that served a limited amount of people, or moving us forward into a world where everyone benefits equally. We know which one of those we want to be focused on. You can read her full essay by clicking here.
Michelle Obama has joined forces with some heavyweight celebrities to push a message of female empowerment in an entertaining way. In line with her Let Girls Learn campaign, the American First Lady has lent her voice in a different kind of way. She is not just speaking the message of girl power, she is now singing it!
Thatâs right, FLOTUSâ vocals can be heard on the track âThis is for my girlsâ produced by hit-maker Diane Warren (who described it to Billboard as âWe Are The Worldâ meets âLady Marmaladeâ) which also includes the likes of Janelle Monae, Missy Elliott, Kelly Clarkson, Kelly Rowland, 16-year-old Motown artist Jadagrace, BeyoncĂ© protĂ©gĂ©sâ Chloe & Halle, Lea Michele and Zendaya is a catchy single, the proceeds of which will go to charities that are working with the âLet Girls Learn initiative.
At the recent South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, Michelle joined a panel moderated by Queen Latifah about the song, and talked more on why advocating for girls education and the same opportunities as boys is important, not just in the developing world, but also in the United States.
She drew upon her own experience as a young girl and why that has compelled her to use her elevated platform for the good of other girls.
âGrowing up as a black girl on the South Side of the Chicago ⊠there were always people around telling me what I couldnât do and telling me how far I should only dream, and my reaction was to prove the doubters wrong,â said the First Lady.
During her time in the White House she has travelled all over the U.S. as well as the world getting a better grasp of why championing the cause of ever girl to have access to education important. Many studies show that for every extra year of schooling beyond elementary school, a girlâs earning potential increases from 10-15% in some cases. It is no just a great idea, this whole âgirl powerâ thing. It is good for the economy to have women participating in their communities and in society, operating at their full potential.
âGrown men trying to snuff out the aspiration of little girlsâÂÂthat inspired me to launch Let Girls Learn. There are a lot of men-only tables going in this country and around the world, and the only people who can change that are the men at the tableâ said Michelle.
In a separate essay for Lena Dunhamâs Lenny Letter to promote the single and corresponding campaign, she explained more on why caring about girls in the developing world is something we in the West can identify with.
 âThis issue isnât just about access to resources like scholarships, transportation, and school bathrooms. Itâs also very much about attitudes and beliefs: the belief that girls should be valued for their bodies, not their minds; the belief that girls simply arenât worthy of an education, and their best chance in life is to be married off when theyâre barely even teenagers and start having children of their own,â she wrote.
It may manifest itself is different ways, but the fundamental idea that women are not equal to men, and are only seen as limited-purpose beings is something many of us have come across in the developed world. It is why breaking the cycle has never been more pressing.
âIâve met girls who make long, dangerous journeys each day to school and then come home and study for hours each night. Iâve met girls studying at rickety desks in bare concrete classrooms who are raising their hands so hard theyâre almost falling out of their chairs. I see myself in these girls â in their ambition and their determination to rise above their circumstances. And I believe that âŠyouâd see yourselves in these girls too,â she added.
The campaign has also launched a website called 62milliongirls.com which is named after the number of girls worldwide which are estimated not to have any access to education today. Here you can find more information, resources, and tools to get involved.
Aside from rallying the sisterhood to take action, Michelle Obama says the role of including men in the conversation is important because equality cannot happen with only half the people in the world participating.
âWhen you have a seat at the table and you have access to power ⊠the question you can ask yourself is, is there diversity around the table? Are there voices and opinions who donât sound like yours? We reach better answers when we have a broad array of voices,â she said.
Missy Elliott talked about her own experience recognizing the need for females to support each other. Growing up she witnessed her mother become a victim of an abusive relationship, and when she eventually left it became a turning point for the rapper.
âBecause I got a chance to see the strength in her, that taught me a lot as a women and being strong and being supportive of other women,â she said.
She also drew parallels to the music industry and how a lack of female decision-makers and female voices at the table means something is missing.
âItâs why youâre not getting as rich [and] diverse a sound in the music as you should. Whenever you remove a womanâs voice from anything, you are lacking. Thereâs no possible way you can be at your best when you remove women from the equation,â she said.
No girl should ever feel like her voice is missing from the conversation. We really love the Let Girls Learn campaign, even more so now that it has its own girl power anthem! During the SXSW Michelle Obama was asked whether she would ever consider running for president, given that it is an election year, and while she adamantly said ânoâ, she did reassure the audience that she doesnât have to be a head of state to champion the cause of female empowerment.
âI donât plan on slowing down anytime soon. And I expect to go into my 60s blazing, blazing and trying to be as fly and as healthy as I can be.â
You can purchase the single âThis Is For My Girlsâ on iTunes where all proceeds will go to charity. Hear a snippet of the song below:
“This article originally appears in the May 2016 issue of ELLE, available digitally on April 5, on news stands in select cities starting April 6, and nationwide on April 19.”
http://www.elle.com/fashion/a35286/beyonce-elle-cover-photos/
“I put the definition of feminist in my song [“Flawless”] and on my tour, not for propaganda or to proclaim to the world that I’m a feminist, but to give clarity to the true meaning. I’m not really sure people know or understand what a feminist is, but it’s very simple. It’s someone who believes in equal rights for men and women. I don’t understand the negative connotation of the word, or why it should exclude the opposite sex. If you are a man who believes your daughter should have the same opportunities and rights as your son, then you’re a feminist. We need men and women to understand the double standards that still exist in this world, and we need to have a real conversation so we can begin to make changes. Ask anyone, man or woman, “Do you want your daughter to have 75 cents when she deserves $1?” What do you think the answer would be? When we talk about equal rights, there are issues that face women disproportionately. That is why I wanted to work with [the philanthropic organizations] Chime for Change and Global Citizen. They understand how issues related to education, health, and sanitation around the world affect a woman’s entire existence and that of her children. They’re putting programs in place to help those young girls who literally face death because they want to learn, and to prevent women from dying during childbirth because there’s no access to health care. Working to make those inequalities go away is being a feminist, but more importantly, it makes me a humanist. I don’t like or embrace any label. I don’t want calling myself a feminist to make it feel like that’s my one priority, over racism or sexism or anything else. I’m just exhausted by labels and tired of being boxed in. If you believe in equal rights, the same way society allows a man to express his darkness, to express his pain, to express his sexuality, to express his opinionâI feel that women have the same rights.”
“We all know that’s not true. Choosing to be a feminist has nothing to do with your femininityâor, for that matter, your masculinity. We’re not all just one thing. Everyone who believes in equal rights for men and women doesn’t speak the same, or dress the same, or think the same. If a man can do it, a woman should be able to. It’s that simple. If your son can do it, your daughter should be able to. Some of the things that we teach our daughtersâallowing them to express their emotions, their pain and vulnerabilityâwe need to allow and support our men and boys to do as well.”
http://www.elle.com/fashion/a35286/beyonce-elle-cover-photos/
genderequalityinthemusicindustry 