Blog: Music and Gender

Music and gender have varying elements that glue the two together. Speaking psychologically, women are more likely than men to respond to music in a more emotional way. Females also prefer popular music more than males. Researchers found that males demonstrated more of a preference for bass music than females. Throughout the history of music, gender has dictated what men and women are supposed to do. From drumming in Native American music to Lil Nas X, music has overcome a lot boundaries. 

In my experience, it starts with youth choir. I was a soprano which was the typical placement for female singers. I did not sound very good to say the least haha, but I thought I would place better with the altos. Tenors were only male because they could reach the depths. But they rarely allowed girls to be altos, if they could help it. Another thing about youth choir was instrumentation. Boys played drums, guitar, bass, pretty much everything. Girls usually did all the singing. Even with praise dancing, women were always the only ones. The global idea that women and men have separate jobs in life, work and home apply everywhere. 

Growing up, I listened to a lot of rap from the 80s and 90s. The lyrics, vulgar but important, showed me that women were talked down to or saw as like a side kick to a man. We as humans listened to the music because of the artist or just because they were apart of the same world as us. But to say the least, the men talking in smooth rhythmic lines only revealed that woman meant nothing but child bearers to say in the nicest way possible. Here is a article on Misogyny in Rap music. For a woman in society, female rap artists do not receive the same recognition as their male counterparts. The portrayal of women is very derogatory. Sexist rap music hinders the societal perception of women and their progress in modern society. Here is a list of rising female rap artists in 2021 that have followed a legacy of past female artists. Some of these artists I listen to now and they talk their "trash" as the slang term says. Men and women battle everyday in the world to establish their roles in the world. In the rap game, the battle is yet to be won. 

To show some innovations from female rap artists, here is a snippet from a tv show called Wild 'N Out.

I am sorry if there are any words that may offend someone or their beliefs. I would like you to at least skim through and hear how the artist Justina Valentine freestyles all the men and schools them every time.