Just in case you think there's no longer a need for feminism
Gigwise

14:54 6th November 2015

More about:

A few months ago, Pitchfork's senior editor Jessica Hopper tweeted asking for the stories of women who'd experienced sexism in the music industry. She wasn't quite prepared for the outpouring of responses that ensued.

It may be 2015, but ingrained misogyny is a pesky stain to remove, and so it's still there, glaringly obvious if you open even one eye to it. This year, sadly, is no exception. One day, we hope that galleries like this will comprise of empty slides.

There are just a few of the sexist moments in music this year. 

  • Ariana Grande's horrendous Power 106 interview: "If you could use make-up or your phone one last time, which one would you pick?" This question was posed, with a completely straight face, to Ariana Grande by the male hosts of the popular US radio show. "Is this men assuming that that's what girls would have trouble choosing between?" she shot back. When she insisted that she can, in fact, go for many hours without using her phone, the hosts responded, "Ladies, learn!" Sigh.

  • Chvrches' Lauren Mayberry vs 4Chan: The singer has had several high-profile run-ins with misogynists this year - not because she's targeted more than other female musicians, but simply because she repeatedly takes a stand against it on behalf of all those who've endured similar abuse. Perhaps most notably, she was linked to a 4Chan forum that called her, among many other names, a "slut" and a "whore" for wearing a dress in the band's 'Leave A Trace' video.

  • Radio X: A few months back, XFM launched its brand new incarnation - Radio X - which described itself proudly as "the first truly male-focused music and entertainment brand." It recruited a whole new host of DJs, all of whom were male, and released jingles that joked that they didn't want female listeners, "with their high heels and make-up."

  • Eminem's transphobic freestyle: Bigotry, of course, isn't reserved for cis women only. In a freestyle rap on Sway's Shade 45, Eminem referenced Caitlyn Jenner: "I see the bitch in you, Caitlyn / I keep the pistol tucked like Bruce Jenner's dick." He went on to directly tackle, unapologetically, his reputation for misogyny, with the line, "Treat women as property, possessive, like a noun with an apostrophe."

  • Waxahatchee's heckler: While performing at The Empty Bottle in Chicago, Waxahatchee turned away from the audience, and a male fan took the opportunity to shout, "He-eeey, I'll give you a back rub." Later, the singer tweeted, "Let me just say: do not yell creepy, objectifying shit at me (anyone) on stage (ever) because I will embarrass you."

  • Janelle Monae's sexist tweeter: "Girl stop being so soulful and be sexy," came an exceedingly ill-judged tweet to the singer, "tired of those dumbass suits... you fine but u too damn soulful man." Her response was retweeted nearly 4,000 times: "Sit down. I'm not for male consumption."

  • Lana Del Rey's Billboard interview: Lana Del Rey's Billboard interview was an interesting, insightful read. Until, that is, that male interviewer decided to ask, appropos of nothing, "Do you think having a child would chill you out?" It's difficult to imagine them asking the same of Ed Sheeran.

More about:


Photo: Screenshot