Women in the Music Industry

Name: Shereze George

Student I.D: 814004295

Programme: Sociology

Course: Gender Studies

Topic: Women is The Music Industry

Some of the biggest names in music today are that of women and it is quite simple to come up with several names right off the bat like Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Lana Del Rey, Rihanna and Taylor Swift. They have been climbing the music charts, dominated by men while raking in many awards for their hard work in the industry. Although women have made their mark in the music world, they are still being treated with an orthodox inferiority that transcends to every field where females are present. These insanely talented women are forced to take up an image of over sensuality, are not properly praised for their successes and are not properly represented behind the scenes in music development.

The image of sensuality and over sensualisation continues to plague the image of female artistes as they are encouraged to wear less and less clothes to get their points across. It is then disguised by them claiming it is done as a mean of “expression”. I am sure we all remember Miley Cyrus’ nude coloured two piece, tongue wagging and butt shaking performance at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards; the performance that left many viewers and celebrities alike in a state of utter horror and silent shock. Cyrus took the norm of the already over sexualised female body and ran with it into the wind. Her behaviour sparked much debate as to whether she had done too much. Perhaps she had crossed the line by accepting her body and not fearing the consequences of showing it off. Her social backlash would not have happened had she been a man. Society wasted no time as they quickly labelled her as a “slut” or a “bad role model”. Cyrus is not the first and will not be the last woman to use her sexuality to promote her art. The women in music videos are also requested to do visually demoralizing movements which could cause many viewers...