With this two-part feature on feminism in music, I have considered the place of women in music throughout history. I’ve split this feature into two parts: ‘The Bad’ and ‘The Good’ and, as is conventional, I started with the bad news and now, I move onto the good. Last time, I reviewed the signs of a stasis in women’s positions within the music industry and now, I look at the signs of evolution.
Disclaimer Reminder: I am a man…
So far, five months of 2015 have proffered a multitude of well-written albums by female singer/song-writers. Torres, Courtney Barnett, Natalie Prass and Jessica Pratt have all released fantastic music, in a range of genres, which has shown that women are responsible for some of the best modern music. The fact that many in online and print reviewing media have rated these albums highly and not made a reference to their looks is a positive point to take home, but none of these women are what you would consider to be top-selling artists. It could be argued that this is due to their sex, but what is more likely the case is that this simply displays that their styles are not complimentary with popular music and culture – not that these women don’t overtly sexualise themselves.
A sexual component in music has been the subject of much music by men and women and the topic of much discussion over the past few years was the infamous 2013 summer single, “Blurred Lines”. It illustrates the ‘women as objects’ stance, and while Robin Thicke has since denied any anti-feminist message, that the track has sold 14.8 million copies worldwide is damning of modern society (if we’re dealing with absolutes). The media backlash over the subject matter of the track however, was encouraging. Many judged the words of Thicke, Farrell and T.I. (like “I know you want it” and insinuating date-rape as a feasible concept) as wildly inappropriate and this comradery spanned the media, artists and the public. Among the many media responses to “Blurred Lines” was the tongue-in-cheek “Hard Out Here” by Lily Allen who countered “ROBIN THICKE HAS A BIG DICK” with “LILY ALLEN HAS A BAGGY PUSSY” and a song that recounted how hard it is for any woman who isn’t a ‘size 6’ and that women are expected to “lose some weight ’cause we can’t see your bones”. Her sentiments, while conveyed in a questionable manner, were widely reflected and it begs the question: “Could this indicate a change in outlook?”.
The answer: possibly! The presence of high-profile feminists like Beyoncé and Lorde at the forefront of music and Zooey Deschanel bridging both music and television holds a significant amount of sway in this area. While these are all incredibly attractive women (as is widely accepted), they maintain the ideal that the focus should be on their work, not how they look. Beyoncé’s sexually potent, self-titled, 2013 album was an example of a carnal woman’s work as she sang the praises of marital sex – not selling her body to the highest bidder – and of female empowerment. In what was considered a highlight of 2013-14 music, she delivered a feminist message and it sold well (moving in excess of five million copies worldwide), something all the more heartening in this day and age.
Beyond the pop music of Beyoncé, 2014 saw the likes of St. Vincent, Angel Olsen and Sia impart well-received, award winning records and they stood out among the plethora of music releases available. St. Vincent’s album saw her break many female taboos (including lyrics involving masturbation) and Sia has spent her time since releasing 1000 Forms of Fear rejecting fame for anything other than her music. Her ‘gimmick’ involves not showing her face during public appearances, and as gimmicks go, it’s effective as it has drawn an attention to her music that would have otherwise not have been gathered. Further to this, her music videos have all featured a homunculus doppelganger (not her), further emphasising the need for the focus to be on her music, not Sia herself. This angle is something that works in favour of feminism (for obvious reasons) and it leads the way for many female musicians.
The feminist ideals in music are not wholly centric to solo musicians however. For example, HAIM, a trio of sisters from Los Angeles, snort derisively at the term “girl band” when it’s aimed towards them and refer to themselves, rightly, as “a band”. Moreover, their focus on the rocky Fleetwood Mac style of music they write and perform has carried over to those who listen to them. Their stock has had a meteoric rise and if you were to speak to them about their looks (over their music) you would probably receive a trifecta of punches to the groin. The group have worked tirelessly to be hailed for their musical merit; not the injustice of gaining fame for the way they look.
Final Thoughts
If I were to answer the question posed in the title, my response would be a difficult one. There are signs that a woman’s place in music is based on her looks (especially in pop music), where for a man it would not be the case. Almost to a one, women who feature prominently in chart music show a lot of skin and have been forced to use their female form to get where they are today. Whether it’s a voluptuous chest or rear end or a pretty face, the likes of Katy Perry, Rihanna or Jennifer Lopez are as well known for their looks as their music. There are artists in the pop scene that hold strong feminist ideals, but this does not sway record companies or the consumer in the way that they’d hope.
In indie/rock/alternative music circles, the general position on the issue is much clearer. The likes of Joni Mitchell and Blondie’s Debbie Harry have always been known more for their music than their figure and this lends hope to the feminist cause. This has carried through to the latest generation, and the likes of Courtney Barnett, St. Vincent, Lorde, Chvrches’ Lauren Mayberry and Sia are better known for their lyrics, eccentricities or voice than they are for how they look. So, “Women in Music: An Evolution or Stasis?”, the answer is somewhere in the middle. In short, strides have been taken, but these strides have been stopped in their tracks for quite a while now as progressive thinking has not extended from alternative music into the popular arena…
