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Historically speaking, women, and those that are female-identifying, have largely been unwelcome in the music business. Unless you were an overstated, hyper-exaggerated version of a sexual, feminine ideal in a front person role, you had no place, no business being near a stage, studio, or mixing board. Femininity in music and the music industry is one that perplexes and fascinates me.
Now I don’t necessarily mean simply dressing in a “girly” way – most, if not all, of us are unable to wear a skirt when working (it’s not practical in the slightest, not to mention a possible safety hazard in live situations. I prefer my trusty blue jeans) – but more the attitude, the feeling of being “feminine,” whatever that means, and how it translates to our work.
Most that I asked this question to initially responded with a hard, “no.” Jill Meniketti, band manager for Y & T stated,
“That’s not something I’ve ever focused on. I focus on my work, which I take seriously. When you excel at your job, that garners respect, regardless of gender.”
Delving in a little deeper into the feminine mentality/attitude aspect garners a slightly different response. When I first got started in the studio, my college professor insisted that being a woman in the studio was a massive advantage, because they are better at keeping the peace and stepping into the role of the band’s creative therapist.
My friend Eva Reistad, a studio engineer based in Los Angeles, echoes this thought. When I asked if there was a time when being feminine proved advantageous, she stated, “yes there was: band members sometimes are more open to the fact that you’re a woman, in which case they’ll sort of open up and tell you more things, which will cause the session to go better. I don’t think it’s really anything so much as femininity so much as being female.” Somehow, just being a woman allows people to feel more secure and comfortable in that situation.
As Eva puts it, “in the end, what I think is how you present your aura, your energy, that will determine how you are treated. You cannot control how other people react. Be comfortable with yourself entirely.”
There is a power in being a woman in the music industry. Being confident and secure in who you are provides a sturdy foundation for the rest of your work, whether you are a tech or an artist.
Article by SoundGirl: Willa Snow
Another great article by SoundGirls: Touring: How To Find Your Work/Life Balance
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The mission of SoundGirls.org is to inspire and empower the next generation of women in audio. Our mission is to create a supportive community for women in audio and music production, providing the tools, knowledge, and support to further their careers. SoundGirls.Org was formed in 2013 by veteran live sound engineers Karrie Keyes and Michelle Sabolchick Pettinato and operates under the Fiscal Sponsorship of The California Women’s Music Festival, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. In 2012, Karrie and Michelle participated in the “Women of Professional Concert Sound” panel at the AES Conference in San Francisco. The panel was hosted by the Women’s Audio Mission (WAM) and moderated by WAM founder Terri Winston. Terri brought together five women working in live and broadcast audio. The groundbreaking panel (which also included Jeri Palumbo, Claudia Engelhart and Deanne Franklin), provided young women and men a glimpse into life on the road, tips and advice, and a Q & A with the panelists. More importantly though, was how incredibly powerful the experience was for the panelists. We had all been in the business for 20 years or more, yet most of us had never met before that day and within minutes we bonded like long-lost sisters. We were struck by how similar our experiences, work ethics, and passions were and wondered why our paths had never crossed and how our careers would have been different had we been there to support each other through the years. Each of us are strong on our own, but together we were even stronger and a powerful force. We were empowered. Each of us had been asked hundreds of times in our careers: Are there other women doing sound? How did you get into sound? How would a young woman go about getting into sound? Through creating SoundGirls.Org, we hope to establish a place for women working in professional audio to come for support and advice, to share our success and failures, our joys and frustrations, and for empowerment and inspiration.
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