International Women’s Month

Idil Hadi
Mar 8, 2021
2 min read

Updated: Mar 9, 2021

Here at Verses + Thesis, we hold a great passion in the art, stories, gems and gifts that women in music have shared with us for decades. International women’s day commemorates the global fight for gender equality and women’s rights. The global conversation is met with labour strikes, prioritising empowerment and education of a woman’s status in society and how we will continue to enforce change. Many women in music join the conversation either through art, expressing it in interviews, social media and public engagement with their fan-base.

Did you know that a 2020 survey of the top 100 songs by British acts to feature in the UK airplay chart between January 1st and August 15th found that only 19% were female acts, whereas male artists account for 51% and mixed-gender collaborations made up 30%?

Did you also know that 80% of British songwriters on the surveyed tracks were male, 19% percent female and 1% non-binary, and to add, only 3% of producers were female?

With statistics like these on a global scale, it begs the question of why? Are there just more talented men? Do less women want to be a part of the music industry? What does it take to make it? Is the industry just a “Boys’ Club” after all? The inequality is darker behind the scenes and a clear reflection of the challenges women face in the music industry.

Misogyny is the hatred, contempt for, or prejudice against women or girls. There is an active enforcement of sexism by punishing those who reject an inferior status for women and rewarding those who accept it. Misogyny manifests itself in countless ways, including social exclusion, sex discrimination, hostility, male privilege, sexual objectification and the disenfranchisement of women.

So when you look at music today, the production of it, what’s sold to you, the access to power (higher positions), imagery, sales, exposure and investment, there is a clear distinction of what a women can achieve with music and how far she can go and progress in relation to male artists.

In a nutshell, the music industry is a working environment where there is an unequal distribution of value and opportunity for women and girls, but with that being said when you look at the art, the quality the skill, the agility of women in music… its highly inspiring to say the least.

With our platform, we aim to promote intimacy and transparency. We celebrate, share and promote the pool of talented women in music, honouring their messages, lyricism, creative outlooks and treasuring the work that goes on in the scene, behind the scenes and watching our women just do what they do best.

We curated a beautiful playlist to celebrate women in the industry in the UK.

We will aim to update this playlist every month with more talented women.

In the meantime, ENJOY THE PLAYLIST!