Published
Fri, May 13, 2022, 12:00
- Billed as the first of its kind, the resource was created by British DJ, producer and academic Professor Samantha Parsley.
A new directory featuring 250 women, trans and non-binary electronic music producers is available now.
Categorised by genre, the In The Key of She directory is being billed as the first of its kind by its creator, British DJ, producer and Portsmouth University academic Professor Samantha Parsley, AKA Dovetail. She compiled the list alongside fellow academic researcher Alex Wright, AKA Hide The Soul.
Speaking to Resident Advisor, Parsley said the directory is to help promoters and labels diversify lineups and address the gender imbalance in the industry.
"Promoters have little idea of where to begin looking for artists to diversify their events," she said. "Meanwhile, their contact books are filled with the same artist names, making it a vicious cycle that leads lineups to stay predominantly white, young and male."
Parsley, an industry consultant and co-chair at the Association for Electronic Music (AFEM), said establishing the directory "is a positive response to the myth there's a lack of gender minority electronic music producers."
While directories like female pressure, Black Artist Database, The F List, SoundGirls and Dynamics already exist to promote gender minorities, Parsley said In The Key of She is the first to solely represent producers.
In The Key of She started as an academic research project critically investigating the career experiences of women and gender minority producers in electronic music. The project evolved into a platform and is now an official partner of Rebekah and Sydney Blu's 23by23 campaign, which is helping labels sign new gender minority talents and achieve 23 percent representation by 2023.
Parsley said her research, which involved 90-minute interviews with around 60 artists, revealed why gender minorities are hesitant to fully commit to producing. The reasons ranged from nasty comments on social media and unwanted male attention in the studio to drink spiking while playing gigs.
Then there are the stereotypes: some people assume gender minorities lack technical skills and that people of colour only produce certain genres. This has created an "exhausting environment," according to Parsley.
"Then you meet some male DJ who thinks you can't use the mixer when you've been DJing for 25 years," she added. "It all chips away at confidence."
DJ and producer Psibindi feels optimistic about being listed in the directory. The psytrance artist, who's spent ten years building PsySisters, a platform to leverage female and non-binary artists, said her work as a promoter means she doesn't have as much time for making music.
"But most promoters like to book producers," she told RA, "so making women and non-binary producers visible on a producer-focused directory can only be a good thing, right? And if promoters start booking gender minority producers as a result, then maybe we can all spend less time fighting for gender equality on lineups and more time producing."
As well as Psibindi and Dovetail, the directory features Shy One, Chippy Nonstop, Shanti Celeste, Laurel Halo, Nastia, Honey Dijon and dozens more. Browse it here.