Analysis: a new report looks at how a musician's gender can impact their career and experiences within the Irish music industry
In the past couple of years, the Irish music industry has been subjected to sustained feminist critique. In parallel with equality movements for women's rights and LGBTQ+ rights in Ireland, grassroots organisations such as FairPlé and the Why Not Her? collective have been raising awareness of many of the ways in which the music industry has been historically guilty of sexism and the real-world effects of gender discrimination on women's careers in music in particular.
In 2021, I surveyed over 500 male, female and non-binary musicians working in Ireland to investigate how a musicians’ gender may impact their career and day-to-day experiences within the music industry. The report on those findings, titled Gendered Experiences of the Irish Music Industry, shows that sexism is alive and well in the Irish music industry. However, there are indications that positive change is occurring, with overwhelming support being expressed by musicians of all genders for a more inclusive and diverse industry.
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From RTÉ 2fm's Dave Fanning Show, interview with writer Sinéad Gleeson about her book This Woman’s Work which looks to celebrate and acknowledge the historically overlooked role of women in music
A musician's gender has a profound effect upon their day-to-day experiences within the Irish music industry and sexism is common. It is an issue faced by men, women and non-binary people in various industry contexts. It contributes to a toxic work culture and its many effects include musicians feeling excluded, isolated, and not being valued.
Forms of sexism experienced by respondents of all genders include unequal treatment due to gender bias, violence and harassment and objectification. Certain forms of sexism are more common amongst certain gender groups and the extent to which it is experienced by different genders is not always similar. As one male respondent puts it, 'exclusion or discrimination can happen in different ways, and it is important that issues of gender and equality are not generalized.’
Non-binary people describe gatekeepers and fellow musicians as being disrespectful, showing discomfort with or simply not recognising their gender expression, and explain that this can be a barrier to them getting gigs. These reasons are never mentioned by men or women musicians.
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From RTÉ Lyric FM's Culture File, report on Resounding the Feminist at the NCH
Non-binary people were also much more likely to experience being treated differently, being subject to offensive remarks and on the end of physical bullying on account of their gender identity in performance and recording settings. To put this into perspective, 91% of men relate they've never been made feel unsafe due to their gender identity while at work, while 66% of non-binary people feel unsafe sometimes or often. This is unacceptably high and the reasons for this must be examined and addressed within the industry.
Women experience the industry in their own way too. They often encounter assumptions in the form of expressions of surprise or doubt about their capability as musicians, their understanding of music technology and sound, and their identity as musicians. 74% of women said they experienced doubts being expressed about their expertise as a performer sometimes or often. While 81% of men have never been mistaken for being a groupie, 58% of women have. 44% of women say this happens them sometimes or often. 59% of women relate it is often assumed that they sometimes or often do not write their own songs or music.
Women also feel they are judged differently to their peers. Women are four times more likely to be held to a higher standard than their male peers. Almost three quarters of women experienced doubts being expressed about their expertise as a performer sometimes or often. While 74% of men indicated they had never been dismissed as 'just’ a singer’, 75% of women indicated they had. Becoming a parent or carer was identified as a significant barrier to women musicians: it ended the careers of 19% of respondents, and for 14% of them it put their career on hold. By comparison, both of these figures were just 3% for men.
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From RTÉ 2fm's Dave Fanning Show, Flo McSweeney and Leslie Dowdall talk about their experiences of the Irish music industry in the 1980s
‘I am devastated. We don't need more 'Women in Music' panels, we just need affordable, quality and accessible childcare in this country. That's why there are fewer women in music. It's not because of a lack of talent, but because women are forced to choose between music or having a family.’
Unfortunately, no revolution occurs without there being some casualties. For instance, some respondents are not happy that women and non-binary people are often lumped into the same categories for funding. A non-binary musician says 'grouping non-binary people in with women like that is really offensive and I find it increasingly prevalent in Ireland's music scene.’
A new form of ‘socially acceptable’ sexism, sometimes described as "positive discrimination", is causing upset to men, many of whom feel they are unable to speak out about it due to the fear of being cancelled. ‘There is a genuine fear from us male artists when speaking about positive discrimination. We can't do it at the moment. The tail of virtue is wagging the dog of the media.’
This form of discrimination is causing resentment and a sense of isolation amongst men. It most commonly takes the form of men being overlooked or excluded from various performance, broadcast or funding opportunities due to gender or diversity quotas in order to promote women or nonbinary artists. The survey’s findings indicate that initiatives that exclude and foster resentment amongst peers are not the solution to gender inequality.
It must be acknowledged that sexism can be experienced quite differently by people of different genders within the industry for meaningful change to occur. Indeed, for real change to occur, we must ask ourselves hard questions, examine our biases, assumptions and belief systems and promote collective social responsibility. Men, women and non-binary people all need to be involved and take responsibly for change. And we all need to call out sexism when we see it.
The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
