I

Dr. Stacy L. Smith, Dr. Katherine Pieper,Karla Hernandez & Sam Wheeler

January 2025

USC ANNENBERG INCLUSION INITIATIVE

INCLUSION IN THE RECORDING STUDIO?EXAMINING , POPULAR SONGS FROM  TO 

Women Behind the Scenes See Little Progress in 2024

Table 19

Table 18

Table 17

Number of Songs by Songwriter Gender

Table 14

Table 12

Table 4

Table 3

Table 2

Table 2 illuminates the breakdown of artist gender by song genre across all 13 years.3 Three trends arereadily apparent. First, women artists were relegated almost exclusively to Pop and R&B genres. Roughlya third (35.9%) of all Pop songs and a quarter of R&B songs (25.2%) credited women as artists. Second,approximately 20% or less of all artists working in Dance/Electronic, Country, Alternative, or Hip-Hopwere women. Finally, no women participated as artists in Música Mexicana. Music is still largely a boy’sclub, with lanes carved out for women in only specific areas of creativity and art.

Has the percentage of women on the Hot 100 Year-End charts changed over time? Yes and no. Thepercentage of women appearing on the 2024 list (37.7%, n=49) was not different from 2023 (35%, n=57).Matter of fact, numerically, fewer women appeared on the list this year. However, the percentage ofwomen on the chart in 2024 was significantly higher than in 2022 (30.2%, n=48) and 2012 (22.7%, n=45).Because the number of women was roughly the same across these years, this suggests that fewer menwere featured on the charts and not that there are more women. This is not good news.

Table 1

Women

Across 13 years, women comprised 15.2% of all nominees across major Grammy® categories.

2021 remains the year with highest percentage of women nominees(28.1%).

2013 (7.9%)

2025 was not different than 2024 (24%),

Of these, 77.3% were men and 22.7% were women.

The analysis of Grammy Award nominees covers 6 major categories: Record of the Year, Album of theYear, Song of the Year, Best New Artist, Producer of the Year, and Songwriter of the Year.

Across the 13-year sample, 55.3% of songs were missing a woman songwriter. As a point of contrast, lessthan 1% (0.7%) or 8 songs did not feature a man in a songwriting role.

n 2024, 46.3% of songs were missing a woman songwriter. There was no change between 2023 and2024 in the percentage of songs missing a woman songwriter. Compared to 2012, there has been a 12percentage point decrease—meaning that more songs feature women songwriters in 2024 than in 2012.

responsible for more than one-quarter (29.9%, n=347) of all the songs on the Billboard Hot 100 Year-EndCharts over the past 13 years.

There were only 3 womensongwriters who worked as often as 6 of the 15-most working men.

Women were most likely to work as songwriters in Pop (20.9%, n=451) followed by Dance/Electronic(19.6%, n=44). Women were outnumbered by men in every genre, and even in Pop the ratio of men towomen songwriters was 3.8 to 1.

Across all 13 years evaluated, 85.9% of songwriters were men, 13.8% were women, and 0.3% weregender non-binary.

024 is also 7.9 percentage points higher than 2012 (11%).

There was no meaningful change in the percentage of women songwriters in 2024 compared to 2023(19.5%).

Of the 461 songwriters credited in 2024, 80.9% were men, 18.9% were women, and 0.2% were gendernon-binary. This is a ratio of 4.3 men to every 1 woman songwriter credited on the charts.

Across all 10 years evaluated, 93.3% of songs were missing even 1 woman producer. Only 6.7% or 61songs featured a woman producer. Only 6 songs evaluated were missing men in a producer role.

73.1% were white women and 26.9% were women ofcolor. There were 2 women of color producers in 2024. Both of these women produced songs on whichthey were also credited as performers. The ratio of men to underrepresented women producers acrossall years is 101.5 to 1

There was no change in 2024 compared to 2023 (6.4%) or 2012 (2.4%) in the percentage of womenproducers.

In 2024, there were 237 producers credited across the most popular songs of the year. Of thoseproducers, 94.1 were men and 5.9% were women.

Only 40.8% of all women on the 2024 Hot 100 year-end charts were from underrepresentedracial/ethnic groups.

Drake

In 2024, 38.9% of single performers were women.

Roughly a third (35.9%) of allPop songs and a quarter of R&B songs (25.2%) credited women as artists.

exclusively to Pop and R&B genres.

However, the percentage of women onthe chart in 2024 was significantly higher than in 2022 (30.2%) and 2012 (22.7%).

was not different from 2023 (35%)

37.7%.

Annenberg Inclusion Initiative

(2023)

Women

Women are leaving the music industry in their 30s and not returning owing to challenges around access, career progression and parenting.95 Since 2018, the number of women aged 45 to 64 in the sector has fallen from 38.7% to 35% despite women outnumbering men in the lower age groups.96

Over 70% of the music workforce is freelance (for musicians the figure rises to over 80%),94 working hours can be unsociable, contracts are often precarious, support is inconsistent and the provision of work is often based on unequal relationships.

The major labels set out the proportion of women in their senior leadership teams: Universal 50%; Sony 55%; and Warner 48%.86 With respect to A&R a department that has traditionally employed more men than women, the labels told us that they now had dedicated programmes to consider barriers to entry and increase the representation of women.87 Vick Bain’s 2019 study of the music industry found that just over 14% of those currently signed to 106 music publishers and just under 20% of those signed to 219 record labels were female.88 The BPI told us: We are already seeing the changes in relation to the signing of women artists as a result of more women working in these crucial roles and targeted entry-level programmes, some specifically for women.89

The lack of women in positions of authority sets the culture and influences decisions for the rest of the profession and can have a direct impact on women’s career opportunities and progression.79

Many of these organisations are sparsely funded, or completely volunteer led.76

here are a myriad of organisations that help support women to have careers in the music industry, from those who gave evidence to us, including the F-List, Black Lives in Music, Cactus City, and Women in CTRL, to more local schemes such as Girls Rock London, Yorkshire Sound Women Network and Manchester-based Brighter Sound to name just a few.71 Initiatives such as UK Music’s Five P’s action plan;72 the global Keychange pledge;73 a joint code of practice by the Musicians’ Union and the ISM74 and the best practice framework for the industry being developed by the BPI (British Phonographic Industry) and others are just some that seek to promote a change of culture in the industry. But as Lady of the House, a platform championing women in electronic music, told us: The fact we have so many initiatives, communities, programs etc is amazing but on the other hand shows the desperate need to straighten the music industry out so it can protect and give women an equal opportunity in regards to equity.75

The Musicians’ Union’s 2022 snapshot survey found that more than 65% of respondents who had experienced misogyny and/or sexism said it was linked to another characteristic. It explained: These behaviours are often experienced combined with and driven by ageism, racism, LGBT+ phobia, ableism, and assumptions about women’s ability to perform if they are pregnant or have caring responsibilities.66

What we found was that women with disabilities were subjected to bullying and harassment so much more often than men without disabilities. We also found that women who identified as sexual minorities experienced bullying and harassment much more than heterosexual men and BME women were sexually harassed more often than white men were.61

including women who had lost work because they had children.60

Constant comments on social media and elsewhere about female musicians’ appearance—on their attractiveness rather than their talent—contribute to a culture where a female artist’s worth is judged first on their looks and perceived sexual availability.5

We heard how women are routinely judged on what they look like before their ability, and lose out on work due to being deemed by people in gatekeeper roles as “not attractive enough” or not having “the right body type”, and that it is not uncommon for employers to request all female bands or sections just to promote a “sexy image”.

Women are also invariably more likely to be accepted as singers in contrast to most other types of musicianship, further restricting their music careers and ambitions.5

We heard that female artists get skipped more on streaming platforms, and that the algorithm then negatively affects them and they move down playlists or are removed completely.48

gatekeeper roles such as programmers, promoters and Artists and Repertoire (A&R)—the area of the business responsible for identifying new talent—are male-dominated.

“As women, we have the stereotype placed on us for being fussy, loud, and bossy. If we call something out or complain, we just completely fulfil that stereotype, there’s literally no winning”.43

she was told not to be “so confrontational and emotional” when raising that a male intern was being paid the same as her. She concluded: Practically every job I have had in the music industry I and my female colleagues have been subject to misogyny which has both affected our moods, proactivity and progression. As the years have gone by I have seen many of these women leave the industry which ultimately makes it harder for those of us remaining.42

Dr Sarah Raine, Fellow at the School of Music, University College Dublin, described to us the experiences of jazz musicians she interviewed: Several women spoke about the emotional toil of being a musician in the contemporary scene, intensified by what they saw as a comparative undervaluing of women musicians by promoters, agents, and media and the scene’s reliance upon a ‘boys’ club’ network of male individuals to gain access and opportunities.41

the world’s largest professional community of music managers, about the unequal standards women face where assertive male managers can be considered “great champions” for their artists, while female managers report being labelled a “b*tch or difficult” if they are equally assertive, and ignored or pushed aside if “polite and kind”.38

There is a dated perception in the industry of what an artist manager looks like. When people don’t see a man in charge they are often shocked to see it’s me. I feel as though I have to work twice as hard as my male counterparts to get the recognition I deserve. Even then it feels everything I do is never good enough in the eyes of some of the powerful white men in the industry.36

ur attention was drawn to the recording studio environment which one contributor described as, “one of those spaces where women are not spoken to when they enter the room […] they are just ignored because maybe they are perceived as a girlfriend.”

Respondents to the Musicians’ Union survey noted “a lack of confidence from employers in [female musicians’] abilities” and that “very often women were asked if they were fans, rather than musicians or it was assumed they must be singers not instrumentalists”.3

Female respondents to a 2022 survey by the Musicians’ Union reported “a range of bullying behaviours such as being humiliated in public, being isolated, and ridiculed in front of colleagues—all of which the respondents noted was related to their gender.”30

“cat-called in rehearsals”, “made to feel uncomfortable by male lecturers” and being told “they couldn’t play their instrument properly if they didn’t sit with their legs open in orchestra rehearsals”.26

Women who play instruments considered ‘masculine’ are often held to a higher standard than their male counterparts with mistakes seen as confirmation of a belief that women are less capable—in many cases women are discouraged from playing certain instruments at all, reducing what women can achieve.2

Participation rates show that music technology courses still show a stark gender imbalance, reflecting the lack of female representation in the production workforce,

roles, courses and genres are given a strong association with gender

suggesting barriers remain for female graduates seeking to start their careers.19

Gender diversity has improved in music in higher education over recent years and there is now almost equal participation.

Whatever the route pursued, we heard that for women, the environment is unwelcoming, access to career opportunities continues to be problematic and those entering the music industry routinely experience misogyny and discrimination.1

n 2022, it contributed £6.7 billion to the UK economy and generated £4 billion in exports. It employs over 200,000 people in a wide variety of roles, genres and settings.1

For BBC Radio 1, one of the UK’s largest stations, female artists were represented in just 15% of the station’s top 20 most played tracks.1

He similarly drew attention to the role of radio: “we endeavour to put on stage what people are listening to […] radio has a greater ability to direct audience tastes than we have, we can only reflect”.14

Emily Eavis, co-organiser of the festival, who has long advocated for balanced line-ups, voiced her frustration at the lack of female artists being signed and supported: We’re trying our best so the pipeline needs to be developed. This starts way back with the record companies, radio. I can shout as loud as I like but we need to get everyone on board.

f all songwriters and composers who received a royalty in 2020 from their music being streamed, downloaded, broadcast, or performed, only one in six (16.7%) were women.11

Throughout this inquiry our attention has been drawn to the experiences of individual female artists, including the instances of abuse they have been subjected to on social media and elsewhere.

known as the Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority (CIISA).

why these concerns persist and how they can be better tackled.

often in places where alcohol and drugs are available, can result in women working in environments that are unsafe.

Abuse and discrimination are not unique to the industry but they are amplified in music by the high number of freelance workers in the sector

unjustifiable limitations in opportunity, a lack of support, gender discrimination and sexual harassment as well as the “persistent issue of equal pay” in a sector dominated by self-employment.3

but in certain areas progress is slow and shackled by discrimination, misogyny and sexual abuse in an industry that is still routinely described as a “boys’ club”.2

This is reflected in the unequal representation of female artists in the rosters of artists at major record labels, in airtime, streaming and as headliners at music festivals.1

Seventy-three percent of women between 18 and 24 felt comfortable in their workplace, which wasthe lowest of any age group.

A majority of women also felt supported in their workplace, but at lower rates than those reportingfeeling comfortable. Women between 18 and 24 felt most supported in their workplace, at 71 percent,which is interesting as they were the age group that felt least comfortable (73 percent).

While women commonly experienced gender bias in the music industry, still over three-quarters feltcomfortable in their work environment (77 percent), while almost two-thirds felt supported in theirwork environment (64 percent).

When looking at the second question regarding gender bias (whether gender affected their employmentin the music industry), women in their forties were most likely to feel that their gender had affectedtheir employment (61 percent), while just 34 percent of women between 18 and 24 agreed.

Self-employed/freelancers were the employment type most likely to feel they had been treateddifferently, at 84 percent.

More than three-quarters of women report experiencing different treatment in the workplace (78 percent), and just overhalf (52 percent) felt their gender has affected their employment in the music industry.

The first asked whether the respondent was treateddifferently in the music industry because of their gender, and the second question asked whether therespondent felt that their gender affected their employment in the music industry.

Fewer comments noted discrimination against women with childrenor stress of working and parenting.

Sixty-one percent of women said that their career was a factor in decisions about having or raisingchildren. Women most commonly cited concerns about work/life balance when asked to explainfurther. Twenty-two percent of comments noted that career considerations influenced decisions tohave fewer children or none at all.

When asked to assess if they were where they should be at this stage of their career, nearly half ofrespondents (47 percent across all job levels) felt they should be further ahead, while a third (33percent) felt they were where they should be, and 8 percent were further ahead.

nearly half of respondents (48 percent) work over 40 hours a week in the music industry, not includingany time working in non-music-industry occupations. Weekly time spent working in the industry variesconsiderably by employment type. A majority of women who work for a company or own a companywork over 40 hours a week in the industry, while those who are self-employed or freelancers, orreport multiple employment types, report a wider range of hours worked.

Eighty-two percent of respondents said that their primaryoccupation was in the music industry, and nearly half of them (47 percent) also had a secondary music-related job. overall, 49 percent of respondents had an additional source of income that was music-related, whether or not their primary occupation was in the music industry. one quarter of those with asecondary music-related position had a primary job outside the music industry.

Level of education wasrelated to increased rates of current employment in a related field as shown in figure 4.

Eighty-three percent of respondents had earned a bachelor’s degree or higher.

nearly 30 percent of women indicated that they were in their thirties, while just over a third werebetween 18 and 29. The remaining 37 percent were 40 years old and older.

For example,MIrA (2018) found that women musiciansspent more time giving lessons and less timeperforming, traveling, and composing than men.

In 2016, Boboltz found that therewere so few women working in music productionthat there were no accurate statistics on womenin the field.

McKinney looked at Billboard Top 40data in 2015 and again in 2016 and found thatsmall percentages of hit songs include womenperformers, female songwriters, and very fewfemale producers (McKinney, 2015; McKinney,2017).

For example, a review of Billboard chart datafrom 1997 to 2007 found that male artists hadhigher numbers of Top 40 hits, although femaleartists’ hits were more likely to reach numberone (Lafrance, Worcester, & Burns, 2011).2

Most recently, in summer 2023, only one in 10 headliners at music festivals in the UK were women.12

What am I to myself that must be remembered,

come back again,

Love, if you love me,

and there was no sign of the occupant.

"Set with raindrops"

the light had changed,

Set with raindrops, displayed