To what extent is the way women are represented, in the music industry and music videos, genre-specific? MUSIC INDUSTRY INVESTIGATION - SUMMER 2009

I have chosen to research this particular area because I feel quite strongly, as I am sure that many women do, that there is unfair female representation within the music industry as a whole, and therefore feel obliged to undertake some research into why this is the case. The idea of genre came about after I had chosen the idea of researching women in the music industry. I starting researching videos to see the ways in which representation was unfair and realised it was, the majority of the time, unfair representation in RnB and rap videos. I thought this was also interesting and therefore decided to add that to the research I will produce. It has been interesting finding the extent of representation and how far artists or bands are prepared to go to promote themselves and their songs. It is very demeaning to females when we perhaps like a song that a particular artist produces, and then watch the video to find male dominance and the video being shown in a male’s perspective, the Male Gaze. It is relevant to society now because, even though women were seen as inferior to men throughout history, some feminist groups, and also the general public, still seem to find faults within society for the way women are treated. Furthermore, women are heavily stereotyped, so I felt it was important to do justice for women who want to break out of stereotypical ways and finally feel equal to men. Within this essay and PowerPoint presentation, I will explore the extent of unfair female representation, discuss factors such as the Male Gaze and ‘sexing up’ the music industry, reference such sites like The F Word, and also add in my own opinions and the opinions of others.

My research consisted of internet/remote research on feminist websites, articles about the music industry and women and also YouTube. I have spoken to a number of my friends within the sixth form that are also taking media studies to get their views on the representation on women. I have also been analysing videos, by watching music channels such as MTV and TMF, and also searching YouTube to find some interesting videos from different genres and comparing them. I have also been researching the internet for articles from magazines or newspapers that aid my research. It is interesting that men expose their opinions of the representation of women in their writing too. During the course of the summer holidays, I began my research at videos. I believed that if I could start anywhere, this would be the best starting point. And then, as I got more involved with the research, I began to ask friends their opinions on the matter, and soon it became clear I was going to enjoy this research. Looking back, I believe I could have done a lot more research around my chosen topic, but am satisfied with the research I have collected. I got given some useful websites to research and soon found myself exploring lots of articles about people’s views on the topic too. The entirety of the topic is vast, so I had to do a lot of deep research to find relevant secondary sources that I could reference and use within project. The majority of my research is qualitative; however, I could have used more quantitative research as well. A lot of my research is also subjective because it is opinionated, or an account/article from someone’s point of view, however this could therefore be seen as partly objective because it is considering gender history and women’s suffrage, for example. I found out what I wished to achieve, and therefore am content with my findings. However, I could have made a plan to research more in one aspect and maybe less in another, as my video analysis is quite limited. On the contrary, I am pleased with the way I carried out my research, and the extent of which my research covers the basis of the topic I chose. This has therefore contributed greatly to my belief in gender equality and assures everyone and anyone that feels the same way, that they are not the only ones that have supported or do support women’s rights. This topic relates quite well with the history of gender struggles and male dominance adding to the research’s objectivity.

First, I would like to begin with the feminist website ‘The F Word’. There are 68 articles that relate to women and the music industry; I would like to reference two. The first one is entitled ‘Sex and the Music Video’. Fay Bound Alberti finds that whatever video she watches, she can’t seem to hide away from ‘soft-core pornography’. She says, “Close-ups of breasts, bottoms, thighs, ever-rising bikini-lines assault the senses as the camera pans in for a gynecologically-inquisitive shot of those disembodied parts humping and pumping like a ’70s porn video.” She references videos such as Eric Prydz – Call on Me and artists such as Britney Spears and Nelly Furtado. She says that she believes most women in the music industry conform to the basic male fantasies, such as sex and wearing little or no clothes, and therefore fulfilling their (majority male) audience’s wishes. The unfair representation of women influences young girls to be like these women, influences the way young boys see women’s roles, and also demeans women and makes them sexualised for a male audience. Another article, entitled ‘Feminism and music – the same old stereotypes’ By Louise Livesey, is another very good article, explaining the problems with the representation of women. She says that music videos and the music industry generally have entered a phase of “male sexual titillation”. She references the importance of women’s involvement in the music industry and says that they aren’t just there to be used to hyper-sexualise the music industry, they are there because it’s their dream to be acting in a video/be a singing artist or band. Again, like the previous article, she says that the videos and artists influence young girls to be like their favourite pop group/singer. The lyrics ‘Don’t you wish your girlfriend was hot like me…’ reflect the way in which a girl of any age can be affected and changed by the music industry. Is this right, to be influencing girl’s lives and making boys see women as stereotypically ‘sexy’?

Here is a quote from AOL Music. They say:
“It’s hard to blame the Pussycat Dolls for marketing their hyper-sexuality. It’s the music industry as a whole that put all their eggs in the old ‘sex sells’ basket. In the last 15 years, rap videos have gone from the ‘hood to the strip club, while Britney Spears’ crotch is considered more newsworthy than her new record.”

AOL Music has suggested here that they are aware of the pressures put on women to perform in the music industry. They also reference the ‘rap’ genre, contemplating the fact that women are represented against their will in these videos. This supports the theory of the ‘Male Gaze’. This is where a music video or film production, a photograph or something produced, is by a man. Therefore, we perceive the video from the point of view of a male. There was an article, which I found on a feminist blog by ‘La Somnambule’ entitled ‘Where does the male gaze end?’. On the 21st May 2006, there was an article in the Observer about a photoshoot with Corinne Bailey Rae, a folk/soul singer. It supported the ideology of the male gaze and therefore is a big aid to my research. La Somnambule says; “Bailey Rae sits on the grass, legs crossed, dress rolled up, and arms hanging in her lap. The way her body is positioned creates a ‘V’ shape so that the eye of the observer is drawn towards her barely covered crotch. Again she is submissive and powerless, because of the angle the photograph is taken from.” This describes the main photo advertising the article. It says that the photo is childlike and coy, and therefore represents the male photographer’s views on women, and the way they act.

“I think it is both an interesting and a sad thing that some women don’t understand that there’s a link between them being portrayed like that and how men view women in general. I never saw the Madonna image as powerful – it just seemed like a woman running her hands over her breasts for the benefit of the male gaze”.
Corinne Bailey Rae.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_fCqg92qks

This is a video, and RnB/dance genre, by Eric Prydz. In the video there are a number of women in leotards dancing and doing ‘aerobics’. These are presented as more of a ‘sex move’ than an aerobic. This is equivalent to any type of ‘soft pronography’ and clearly targeted at a male audience. The women are hyper-sexualised, meaning to impose a sexual interpretation or perception on something or somebody. The embedding has been disabled by the user’s request; therefore I cannot put it onto my blog. Other artists that represent women as ‘sex objects’ and desires for men are; Snoop Dogg, Dr Dre, a lot of dance music and so one of my friends (Natasha Burton) told me; “Just go to the charts and every artist surely has some unfair representation of women!”

The implications for the music industry are now more important than ever before, especially with the growing idea of feminism spread throughout the internet. Surely now, the music industry is going to be influenced, and is clearly going to develop in the same way it is now. Unless anybody campaigns for change, which in my argument and other people’s feminist views is quite possible, the music industry will carry on demeaning women. If this continues to be the case, women are going to think less and less about the music industry and therefore the popularity of the music industry will decline. Women’s views of genres such as RnB, Dance and Rap will also fall and become based upon its unfair representation. To overcome this, the music industry needs to employ more female directors, photographers and choreographers to produce advertisements and promotions for an artist or song such as photoshoots, CD covers and music videos. This topic will soon take over the music industry and bring it into decline. ‘Fun feminism’ began with the Spice Girls and other artists, but since then, it has spiralled out of control and become almost a target to women. If something isn’t done to prevent this, then women are going to be taken aback by the representational issues, and young boys and girl’s views on women and the role of women are going to be totally biased.

For my media production, Emily, Ian and I have only 2 characters. The song is called ‘If You Only Knew’ by Chris Cohen (unsignedbandweb.com) as we had to change last minute due to an unreliable artist. In the video, there is a couple that have an argument. Taking account of my research, I suggested that the female become the strongest in the argument as she is the weakest towards the end. Throughout the video, the male and female characters are on par with each other as far as one isn’t stronger than the other. Then at the end, the female realises how much she misses the male character and goes back to him. After the research I have carried out, the ending represents the male gaze slightly as the women is seen as weak for going back to the male, rather than the male going back to the female. However, it is balanced with the female’s strength at the beginning of the narrative.

This research project has really highlighted, for me, the importance of representation, and how it can affect everyday life. Young people’s views are highly influenced by any media sources from magazines, films and children’s programmes, to musical performances, channels and videos. A lot of what young people base their views on is what they see in these media productions. Is it fair to stereotype women in a way that boys see them as the ‘housewife’ and the ‘sex object’? Is it right that young girls should aspire to be like their famous role models and become ‘size zero’ ‘super sexy’ and wear little or no clothes and tonnes of make up? No woman wants to be stereotyped and categorised, and we are therefore taking steps backwards towards society in history. Men are not superior to women, it is just a view that men had in historical periods. Surely we are supposed to be moving forwards, not backwards? Or is that just me?

Bibliography

• Google (www.google.com)

• YouTube (www.youtube.com)

• The F Word feminist website (www.thefword.org.uk)

• Suite 101 (http://musicindustry.suite101.com/article.cfm/women_in_music)

• La Somnambule’s blog (http://lasomnambule.blogspot.com/2006/05/where-does-male-gaze-end.html)

• AOL Music (www.aol.com)

• A feminist 101 Blog: ‘What is the Male Gaze?’ (http://finallyfeminism101.wordpress.com/2007/08/26/faq-what-is-the-%E2%80%9Cmale-gaze%E2%80%9D/)