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Sarah Borkowski
Dr. Griffin
English 1102-097
4 April 2014
Those Were The Days
Among strikingly loud guitars, microphones, and crowds, the ability to not be heard in a
concert setting reigns unfathomable. Music inherently weaves its way into society, culture, and
education of those exposed from a very young age through the years of life. Regrettably, voices
still remain unheard, especially of those who belong to the feminist community of music. On the
surface, these women appear to command respect and dignity, but oftentimes the culture around
women in power actually adversely punishes and dampens female voices. From socioeconomic
upbringing, to subtleties in the texts that outline the mood of these female artists, the antifeminist
undertone sprawling throughout the music industry truly poisons those who simply just want
their voices heard.
The first step to admitting there is a problem is actually admitting the issue in the first
place. Many women at this day and age amidst a digital storm still fail to recognize that
feminism remains an issue. Who is the desired audience of female frustration? Will the outcome
be worth the time and effort? Thinking back to times where action was necessary -- abortion
rights, womens suffrage, etcetera -- women spoke out under a gut feeling of rightfulness. In our
present day, society lacks a need to become part of the actual group who fights for equality,
due to the lack of a seemingly immediate benefit. Typically, women who do not congregate
during times of hardship lump into what Hall and Rodriguez describe as pockets of
antifeminism (882). These pockets referred to contain chunks of the female population who
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did not experience cultural and gender rights movements such as suffrage or fighting for respect
in the workplace. Then, feminism wore the guise of a necessity rather than a cause for uprising.
Women removed from this generation oftentimes press against the female movement because the
need to react is not apparent. Women presently shy away from feminist mentality for the
negative media representation of feminists as unattractive, unfeminine, and lesbians...they fear
it distances them from men(Hall and Rodriguez, 884). Media perception of women bears no
resemblance to the equality deserved by the women being judged by this same media. An
unattainable image populates for women, and those who do not conform may suffer
tremendously.
In terms of speaking up, albeit tough, the brave women who form musical groups and
tour the countries face the same issues as the female population at large. Where the true nature of
antifeminism in the music world rears its ugly head can be seen in traditionally male genres,
such as punk rock. More specifically, these traditionally male genres ostracize women by a
fundamental principle that remains unavoidable -- biology. To no surprise, biologically women
and men differ; thus, a comparison of their difference leaks over into how women express
themselves through music. Before understanding the plight of punk rocks women, critics
already have a predetermined notion of what female music should sound like --
fundamentally soft or non-hierarchal (OMeara, 302). Before the women of punk rock are even
heard, they face comparison to mental catalogues of what female should be -- pop music, or
somewhat dainty and fragile. Looking specifically to The Raincoats, a UK based all-female
punk band, the women found a voice despite rocks male-dominated and misogynist
culture(303). The Raincoats carved a subspace of the male dominated rock culture to get their
opinions heard. These ladies used punks ideology of opposition as the basis...Yet they refused
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to use their gender as a starting off point for punks politics of shock (OMeara, 304). Stripping
away this inherent gender from music, these women just felt the movement as men had already
done. This ideology of opposition expresses an idea of nonconformity, although this principle
contradicts how the traditionally male sphere acts upon women -- oppressing them and reducing
them to just women. The Raincoats identity surpasses one of women trying to play in a male
space and transverses into one of genuine concern and the right vehicle -- punk -- to get the job
done.
The media, very interestingly, also reacted to the no-nonsense attitude of the Raincoats
appearance and musical message. OMeara speaks of how publicity photos rarely focused on
their whole bodies...the Raincoats often interacted with each other[creating] a feeling of
community around the band, rather than one of stardom (305). Since the Raincoats attempted
to prove their individuality away from a typical view of how women should dress and act, the
media adjusted accordingly. Almost shying away from showing the true form of these ladies, the
media did not see the Raincoats unique style as beautiful and feminine within its own regard.
These women preached a tale of no frills and equality, in comparison to many modern media
outlets which emphasize exuberance. Take into consideration an event such as the Grammy
Awards. For days preceding the event, news anchors and media aficionados attempt to guess
what each celebrity will wear, who will attend alongside, and the like. In these photos, focus lies
on the female body. The Raincoats understood that physical appearance only told part of the
story, and their community of punk rock needed to support this portrayal of strong, musical
women with a message (OMeara). By committing to an image in music where gender role is
removed from the art itself, the Raincoats and women in general can push back this outrageous,
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unattainable image of women as the softer sex. Allowing women to express as women,
regardless of garb, will help chip away at the walls of antifeminism.
Not only does the punk rock world face such blatant disregard for women in music, but
other genres as well subjugate positive self image for women. Rap music, specifically gangsta
rap claims no stranger to the treatment of women in the community and behind the
performances. Differently from the punk community, the actual content of a lot of gangsta rap
[reduces women] to mere objects -- objects that are only good for sex and abuse and are
ultimately a burden to men (Adams and Fuller, 940). Although the women themselves
hopefully do not spread such hate and sexism, the fact the community they belong to supports
such misogyny speaks volumes about the issue at large. Predominantly in the African American
communities of the US, but not limited to, the cultural attitude towards women of rap stems from
a capitalists patriarchal system based on the principles of White supremacy...racism, and
sexism (Adams and Fuller, 942). Seen with the Raincoats and the feminists attitude of the
womens rights movement, the lamentation for forward action in the rap community stems from
a cultural burden placed on African Americans, and an upbringing by parents who experienced
such degradation of character themselves. Men in this community grow up with images of needs
to feel superior, and that inherently women possess the form of subhumans, who willingly
perform degrading acts (Adams and Fuller, 950). As a woman in this sphere, dissuasion from
taking a stand and pursuing such a genre as rap -- not particularly at the fault of those who
discriminate -- more often than not stem from the society in which they are bred. The need for
removal of such hate from a subculture of popular music such as rap will again lead women
closer to the respect they deserve as a representation of half of the population.
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Key to understanding this society being referenced by all genres of music, the focus
must be taken away from the community for a moment and placed onto those who are consumers
of the products. Underlying perceptions of womens gender roles make informal decisions about
their ability to physically perform on the same levels as men -- concerning the necessary skill to
play an instrument, command a crowd, and other elements of performance. Across all races and
socioeconomic backgrounds, determinations that women are the primary figures for most
children...suggests that mothers will exert a significant influence on future attitudes of their
children (Blee and Tickamyer, 23). Noticing a lack of gender added, the argument rests that
most children will formulate opinions on properness of actions based on the parenting
received. If a womans mother showed particular interest in the womens rights movements of
the mid-20th century, that same woman may be more apt to speaking up and speaking out, due to
previous example. Similarly, if a mans mother adhered closely to the role of a traditional
housewife, he may wish the same for his future with women. In this same case, quite
interestingly, African American men are more inclined to be favorable of hard-working women,
where White men seem to be more conservative on the idea -- mostly analyzed as being a
difference in where the two groups grew up and under what circumstances (Blee and
Tickamyer). This research may lead to suggestions that the success of women in the music world
can be directly correlated to the views of women as a child progresses to adulthood. Thinking to
the Raincoats and punk rock music, although these women face injustice, other women typically
support their plight to gain a bit of notoriety for feminist behavior. However, in some cases
these women are not taken as seriously as their male counterparts in the same genre of music.
In rap music, women who are largely objectified by the music are not necessarily discussed as
being outrightly discouraged from participating in the genre. This sort of adverse affect on
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gender role perception and participation may have more to do with the fans themselves of the
genre than gender alone.
Group or gang mentality towards a subject can be devastating, especially amongst the
fans of different genres of music. Specifically turning to rock music, men and women in this
particular discourse seem to form biased opinions of music dependent upon the gender of the
performer. When integrated into the discourse, the music press assumes that all its readers are
male (Davies, 301), not accounting for how women perceive the same music men may listen to.
This dangerous, one sided assumption aims to dissuade women from entering a career of music
performance for a lack of being taken seriously by fans and critics alike. Women are considered
in music to be a perpetual novelty, rather than carving an auspicious place in the respect of
artists. (Davies, 302). Davies also mentions that women in music are not considered musicians,
rather just women. As if a feat of design, women get downtrodden simply for being
biologically born an alternate to men. Simply put, women will continue to fail when capturing
titles such as serious performer and the like. Women in present day will still be treated as just
that women rather than performers with something to give back to their communities.
Evident that women need to find their voices in music as an industry, the fans -- not
critics-- typically are generally favorable towards women who perform particularly emotional
lyrics. Men and women alike admit that musical lyrics and meaning are not necessarily thought
about in a social setting the key to realizing the true nature is observed while alone. While
men subconsciously distanced themselves from lyrical content that specifically represented
women performers gendered lives offstage, they revere the women speaking about their issues
as good role models for women (Bessett, 57-58). Men do not identify with these issues, yet
they identify that women should heed the messages from powerful women in music as scripture.
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Men are inherently acknowledging that there are issues within the feminist community and
music, while at the same time excluding it from being an important factor to their personal male
enrichment. This mutual exclusion proves poisonous, especially in musical discourses of male
dominance (like punk rock) where these men could potentially serve as vessels for the propulsion
of the womans plight.
When women do decide to speak up on the issue, one important thing to analyze is the
language women choose to represent themselves and the misogyny they face by the culture at
large. In a digital age, women are allowed quick communication of the internet, interacting with
fans much more easily. The sexually aggressive comments against women in music, such as
pop rocker Lauren Mayberry expresses, seed from a long root of unbiased hatred for women in
the limelight. Oftentimes, these comments of sexual degradation are viewed on YouTube
videos, blog comments, Facebook comments, etc and are categorized as banter. The musings
however, urge people like Mayberry to reject an acceptance of the status quo (Chvrches
Lauren Mayberry). Looking specifically at Mayberrys syntax, she seems to rant on the issue
rather than including herself as a proponent to the feminist success. Mayberry chooses to use
phrases such as in my position, referring to her position as a woman in the music industry only
once. She does, however, refer to her plight as a music group, mentioning the band, us , and
we much more frequently. This removal from the issue as an individual and placing emphasis
on the group does not place enough emphasis on the importance of a woman to end the
degradation. In fact, she does not directly address the feminist issue or prove a concrete solution
throughout the entire article.Her message rings clear and concise -- misogyny must cease to
exist, and sexism in general must go with it. (Chvrches Lauren Mayberry). Based on
Mayberrys discomfort with accepting the issue as her own, this feat will be difficult for anyone
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placed in a similar situation. With the enlisted help of men who proliferate the music that women
create, women may feel more empowered to let their poignant voices ring truth to the problems
ahead.
Another interesting case where language plays a vital role in womens own degradation
of their public image in feminism speaks out in an interview with Kathleen Hanna, a member of
the Riot Grrrl movement band Bikini Kill (and more presently the group Le Tigre). Hanna in an
interview speaks of the negative media representation of women. She claims Im not really
interested in creating positive images of women (Hanna and Klein, 7). Interestingly enough, she
does not claim a need or a necessity to form a positive image for women. Rather, Hanna
professes she [doesnt] believe that, okay, there are all these really sexist representations of
women in the media and theyre really negative and therefore I'm going to create positive
ones...Im going to create other ones, and I cant tell you if theyre positive or negative because I
dont know (Hanna and Klein, 7). Instead of trying to be a role model and positive influence,
the neutrality of Hanna just trying to do whats right for society speaks volumes. She finds herself
less concerned with the perception of her actions as actions for a cause -- she corrects the
wrongs in her society by ignoring the feminist aspect altogether and simply does what is right.
Just as Mayberry argued for a removal of sexism from the culture, Hanna believes by ignoring
the stigma and strong female emulation misogyny will cease to exist.
Stepping aside from the banter of femininity in music and the masculine sphere inhabited
by all genres, the key to reversing the bias may lie within those who fuel the outlet in the first
place -- the big wigs in power. The end result of choosing to perform culminate in a profit of
some sort. The operators of the music industry deny that womens rights have any profitability
for the company as a whole or for an individual (Rosenblum, 66). Thusly, womens degradation
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in music, albeit horrendous, does not detriment the thriving nature of the business as a whole.
Again, even in a business mentality, women are seen as women and not again as performers
-- where the performers are the true source of income for these corporations. Rosenblum so
tastefully chooses that these businesses [have] turned art into a commodity, rather than just
that -- an actual art form. (Rosenblum, 67). At the end of the day, womens plights are not
marketable and are difficult to capitalize on. Just as Mayberry spewed her heartfelt disdain via
the internet blog, the music industry would struggle to capture and more importantly capitalize
on her energy and efforts. As long as consumers accept this fact, and disregard the powerful
voices of these women as unprofitable, the media will continue along the same path and not
allow introspective analysis of the true problem in the entire industry.
Becoming impossible to ignore, the culture in which an individual lives shapes the
mentality of the same individual. Our culture continuing along a path of misogyny and distrust of
women will only proliferate the issues at large. Feminism is now, and will continue to be, a
pressing and unnoticed issue in our daily regiment of musical enjoyment. Instead of ignoring the
cries of women in the media, truly solving the issue at bay requires community involvement. As
a whole, the community must make a conscious effort to course correct past mistakes. The
positive and equal treatment of women must start at the home from a young age, and those who
are not brought up in the same spheres must mutually agree that women hold a viable future to
the success of the generations progressiveness. Evident from multiple examples across different
disciplines of music, the creative nature of women must not be pushed aside and seen as
feminist and cute, but rather a serious force reigning paramount to the success of a nation
and world as a whole. By listening to the women who already have spoken up and given their
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best efforts, harnessing this power and control will undeniably create a better life and equality
amongst women for generations to come.













Works Cited
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Remains the Same: Misogynistic Lyrics in Rap Music." Journal of Black Studies 36.6
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Bessett, Danielle. ""Don't Step on My Groove!": Gender and the Social Experience of
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Blee, Kathleen M., and Ann R. Tickamyer. "Racial Differences in Men's Attitudes About
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"Chvrches' Lauren Mayberry: 'I will not accept online misogyny'." theguardian.com.
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