The music industry has announced two major initiatives to address the ‘monumental’ lack of diversity in the sector, particularly in its leadership ranks.
Both the Recording Academy, which represents the voices of performers, songwriters, producers, engineers and all music professionals, as well as the Grammy Awards, and non-profit Women In Music have announced reforms to correct the lack of diversity in the industry.
The Recording Academy’s Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) Task Force, set up last year, just published a report of its findings outlining 18 reforms and recommendations for the body. This is one of many initiatives put in place “to build a membership that reflects the diverse creative community that it represents, and to help the music community and industry thrive as a place where all voices are welcomed, supported and nurtured to succeed”, said the Recording Academy.
MAJOR REFORMS
The D&I Task Force’s report outlines a range of recommendations that touch virtually every part of the Academy’s operations, from internal policies and organisational structure to the GRAMMY nominations process. According to the Recording Academy, it has already made significant progress toward implementing 17 of the18 reforms set by the Task Force, including ensuring gender parity on Awards and Governance committees, publicly reporting on the demographic composition of its workforce across different levels of seniority, and increasing outreach to diverse communities, which include key initiatives for female producers and engineers.
Photo credit: Benjamin Lehman of Pexels
PROMOTING DIVERSE MUSIC CREATORS
Additionally, the Recording Academy says it will formulate formal diversity and inclusion goals for the Academy’s Board of Trustees and adopt a new Board structure that will prioritise identifying and elevating a diverse range of music creators to positions of leadership on the Board next year. It will also continue to research the report’s recommendation to change portions of the GRAMMY Award voting process to a ranked-choice system.
“The mission of the Recording Academy is to serve and advocate for music creators from all genres and of all genders and generations,” said Recording Academy President and CEO Deborah Dugan. “We have recently made tremendous progress and I’m proud to report that our leadership team is currently 50% female and that the 2019 Academy membership class is the most diverse in our history. However, there is still work to be done. We are deeply committed to continuing to implement the Task Force’s recommendations and building a community that is truly representative of our diverse and dynamic creators.”
WIM D&I COUNCIL
It’s hoped these changes will not only improve diverse representation in the music industry, but also increase the number of women in the industry’s leadership. New York-based Women In Music (WIM) has also announced the launch of its D&I Council, to ‘cultivate change and equality throughout the industry’s leadership’.
WIM and its D&I Council plan to create a series of events globally within their chapters and at WIM’s industry conference events in 2020 to learn, educate, open conversations and offer resources. The events will take place in eight countries worldwide, including the US, Barbados, Brazil, Colombia, Canada, India, Japan, UK, as well as 10 cities across the US (Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, New York, Portland and Washington DC.
In addition to the various global events, WIM says it will prioritise its D&I Council as part of its WIM 50/50 programme by inviting speakers and performers with diverse perspectives at conferences. The 50/50 initiative was created to drive equal representation in the music industry where women are outnumbered. The goal of 50/50 is to partner with industry conferences to help programme keynote and panel engagements for female executives.
CREATING AN INCLUSIVE & EQUAL INDUSTRY
The D&I Council’s initiatives will be spearheaded by Chairman, Chissy Nkemere who is currently the Senior Director of Streaming Marketing at Concord, and includes top executives such as Atlantic Records’ Nikisha Bailey, Nevarez PR’s Mayna Nevarez and Pandora’s Sonja Kim. It will also include male members, such as Jeff Hammer of Northwestern Mutual, Michael Adams Jr from Asylum Records and Nick Maiale from the Music Business Association, to ‘create an inclusive and more equitable music community overall’.
WIM’s President Nicole Barsalona announced the new D&I Council and shared plans for 2020, at a recent music event at in New York City: “Our goal in creating the Diversity & Inclusion Council at Women In Music is to make sure we are being intentional in all of our work, and to meet the needs of underrepresented groups that too often go unaddressed under the larger gender equity umbrella.”
“We want to open up the conversation in a real and impactful way – for women of colour, for the LGBTQ community, for our male allies, and more – to create a safer, more inclusive and more equitable music industry for all. I can’t think of anyone better than Chissy to lead the way – I know she’ll be a powerful and inspiring voice for our members and partners, and I can’t wait to see what we can all accomplish together,” stated Barsalona.
Adding to her comments Chissy Nkemere, said: “When Nicole approached me to serve as Chair for Women In Music’s Diversity & Inclusion Council, it was an immediate yes. Being able to use my experience to help amplify the work of a diverse community of women, while connecting to and learning from young talent on the rise is an incredible opportunity. I’m proud to be part of this growing team and excited for this new direction for Women In Music!”
Last month, WIM also launched its Mentorship Programme, which facilitates one-on-one relationships by matching women with music industry professionals to provide education and career development opportunities – an initiative that will also involve the D&I Council.
Click here for more information about WIM.
Sign up for our newsletter
