The music industry has been becoming more inclusive everyday; however, inequalities are still seen. Although women are encouraged to speak up for themselves, it is also important for men within the industry to acknowledge their privilege and try to promote positive change. The 1975 have committed not only to solely playing gender-balanced music festivals, but also to being allies of women everywhere, and especially women in the music industry, fighting to be heard.
Matt Healy, the frontman of the band, announced this decision after the announcement for the Reading and Leeds line-up, which had 20 acts with women out of 91 acts all together. The goal moving forward is to have festivals that are split between male artists, female artists, and non-binary artists more equally. Many people believe music festivals are supposed to promote inclusivity and be a safe space, but the actions of these music festivals are rarely mirroring that in any acceptable way. It is important that the music industry promotes equity and equality because it truly is an industry the majority of young people look up to. It’s important to see positive representations of minorities, oppressed groups, and intersectionality.
“Healy said he wanted to see other male musicians taking similar steps to ensure the equal representation of women, non-binary and transgender musicians. “It’s all about action,” he said. “When it comes to big sociopolitical issues and governments are involved, sometimes action or protest can just be ignored. But when it comes to the music industry, we can change that. It’s not a geopolitical nightmare: it’s the music industry, and it’s something that if everyone gets on board, we can fix.””
For more information on the 1975’s decision, visit the original source at the Guardian website.
Girl Pow-R is a group of young women at Canyon Entertainment Group that also want to see a balance in the music industry, so that neither gender nor identity hinders a group or individuals’ abilities to create and share awesome music. Contact us today for more information at info(at)girlpow-r.com.