Women’s History Month is a time to celebrate all of women’s contributions and achievements across the United States. As a quick overview, following International Women’s Day on March 8th, Sonoma County’s Santa Rosa initiated Women’s History Week in 1978 This celebration was organized in public schools to raise awareness about women’s history. Reflecting on this month may mean many different things to individuals, but one aspect remains consistent: the importance of promoting equality, especially within the music industry.
Historically, women have faced challenges in being recognized as professionals in the industry. With a significant gender imbalance in festival and concert line-ups, there is plenty of room for improvement within the music scene. Only about a quarter of the artists booked for festivals in the last few years have been female, contributing to a male-dominated concert scene.
The gender disparity is particularly evident for female artists seeking to enter the music scene; however, it also serves as motivation to strive for a place on the stage. While there is still much progress to be made, the music scene has gotten better throughout the years. Here at Nothing Mag, we strive to uplift women by featuring local female-fronted artists not only at our annual festival, Nothing Fest, but also by prioritizing their exposure on our social media platforms.There are several other promoters with the same mission that we should be supporting in order for the community and industry to reach its fullest potential in equality and equity.
Some of those promoters include:
Frowny Face Records– They bring a unique duality of being a record label and a local music hub devoted to promoting and uplifting local bands and musicians based in Southern California! Their work focuses on advocating for and empowering marginalized communities within the local music scene.
Rosie’s Pad is female-dominated and has been able to create a supportive community on social media and through the DIY events they host. Their dedication to the underground music/art scene has inspired many local artists to join their creative community.
The Witching Hours is an independent booking agent and promoter dedicated to introducing local and emerging artists from around the globe, uplifting marginalized voices in the celestial music realms while also creating a safe and inclusive space.
For music lovers wanting to support the movement of creating space for women on stage, starting locally and supporting the women in your local scene is a great way to start. A large number of female-fronted bands in our LA/OC music scene have already begun their journeys to the top.
Highlighting just a few female musicians:
The Frick Fracks is an all-female group from Southern California, comprised of singer/bassist Devan Renae, drummer/singer Samantha Martinez, and keyboardist/singer Madeleine Lewis. Their genre is inspired by pop, indie rock, and alternative sounds, creating a unique experience for the listener.
LavaLove is a female-fronted band and is based in Los Angeles. Founded in 2019 by lead singer and songwriter Tealarose Coy, their music combines modern indie, surf rock, and acid jazz. Guitarist Jenny Quay, bassist Stephanie De Santos, and drummer Dylan Goldstein later joined, completing the ensemble.
Two Headed Girl is also a female-fronted band based out of San Diego. Carley Fischer is the lead songwriter, vocalist, and rhythm guitarist, followed by Tommy English as the drummer and Daisy Lang as the guitarist. The band writes and self-records all of their music in a combination of garages and bedrooms, merging various influences, including indie rock, emo, and pop punk.
With many more local female-fronted bands and musicians to explore, we came together and created a playlist titled “Queens of the beat: Celebrating Women’s Voices” to celebrate Women’s History Month. Give it a listen below!
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1oZzQ8lYb9a2q6u3EMldRW?si=b0b5e8ca29be4ac2
