Abstract | Gender inequality in the music industry still imposes a great problem for today’s society. The industry is mostly male biased in every possible area whether we think of singers, bands, classical musicians, producers, record owners, or simply journalists or a worker in a music shop. This inequality goes back to the time when humans realised they are biologically different as it was represented in the Bible with Adam and Eve. The ideology says that males should be the ones who make all the decisions, provide for their families and hold the power over women, children and animals, while women have the subordinate role where they take care of the children and household. Furthermore, females do not make any decisions, own a property or have a say in anything, they are also not allowed to attend universities. Consequently, there are not many famous classical musicians from the past because they were not allowed to publish their works. The only ones who managed to do something were the ones whose husbands and fathers were well known musicians. The shift occurred at the beginning of the twentieth century with suffragette movement, civil rights, First World War. All of these events allowed women to slowly gain their voice and rights. At first women could only be singers or bass players, but slowly through alternative genres like punk they managed to infiltrate into the music industry. Major break-through was when women discovered they can get famous by exploitation of their sexuality which is still today’s best tool for a break through. Some women, who become very famous, use their fame to address today’s biggest problems in society. Through her music, Beyoncé fights for women and African American society. She has the power to influence people by inspiring and encouraging women all over the world. By doing that she is a voice for the voiceless. Although today’s society has made a major leap forward when it comes to human rights and equality, still both men and women need to learn and adjust to the new society if we hope that one day gender inequality will be a part of the human history. |