Gwen is a really beautiful lady as all of these girls are, but I get the feeling that Gwen sees herself as a more demure, classy kinda artist.

I can totally see her point here, as her sexuality is not as aggressively marketed  as some of the other females at the top of their game.

See the article here – ELLE Article 

One thing is for sure though, she does capitalise on her sexuality though I do feel, as she does, it is more tasteful.




Below is one of my favourite No Doubt song, produced by The Neptunes.

Born Marian Joan Elliot-Said at Bromley, Kent on July 3 1957; she left behind a legacy to be proud of.

With so many people showing their support and love for her, I couldn’t help but think of what she had achieved crossing racial barriers and standing up to be counted in a male dominated scene.

A trained opera singer who dressed in an unusual and theatrical manner.  Rather than use that trained voice she screamed in a punkish fashion, sounding like nothing else and totally doing it her way!

An important influence on the “Riot Grrrl” movement of the early 1990s, she is survived by her daughter, Celeste Bell-Dos Santos, the front woman for the Madrid-based group Debutant Disco.

I’ve been putting together a research proposal into the “Hidden” female musicians in Glasgow.  I want to find out how many there are approximately and ways and means of promoting them.

I need opinions and different views in order to shape and inform my research.

In my preliminary research I’ve found that there are many women in positions of power in the Scottish music industry and have felt that, maybe it is the men that are under represented?

As with my previous blog the stats don’t lie, we [female musicians] are underrepresented and we need a means to rectify this.

Do you know any musicians that have an opinion? Tell them to get in touch.

The Facts:
* In its 18-year history the Mercury Prize has been awarded to only five  
women.
* Just 4.1% of works performed at the 2010 BBC Proms were composed by
women.
* The PRS for Music membership (writers and music creators) is currently
only 14% women.

Below is a video of the Industry Take over 2011, this was a specialised panel themed “Women in Music”.

I wonder if the same can be said for the music scene in Scotland? Before looking into this topic I evaluated my perception of the scene. I have always found it to be heavily populated by male musicians and therfore presummed that the people in power were obviously male.

Journalist Olaf Furness alerted me to the fact that industry “Cultural intermediaries” (Bourdieu,1986) in Scotland are infact very female. I was shocked to learn this as I think it is very easy to jsut default to the disposition that when it comes to music women are marginalised.

I’d be interested to hear the views and opinions of the people who are in these roles and even the views of the music/gig buying audience and fans. Is there a need in Scotland to support the females just as the nation wide bodies such as PRS and other bodies that feel the need to promote and provide additional support to women.

Contact me – patricia.panther@hotmail.co.uk

Music videos and stage costumes especially the former have become increasingly sexualised, I sometimes wonder who it is for – the female fans or the males or could we argue that it appeals to both?

As a female artist I feel uncomfortable being perceived as being interested in anything other than the music, so I make sure I look good on stage without being too overtly sexualised. I have put this blog together to first and foremost research the views and opinions of both men and women on what they think of the imagery that some artists oercieve to be ‘empowering’ and stylistic and not having a negative influence on kids. I know this sort of portrayal has been on going for years and I think the reason I have to ask about it, is because I make music and I hope that it is not necessary.

I am not wanting to appear to bash the females as the males are guilty of it too. The rise of the so-called hip hop honey turns my stomach and it has to be said that on both sides the female is the one that is exposed and commodified.

Artist Janine Rostron, seems to hide her femininity behind prosthetic noses and masks, she pitches her vocals down and dresses in a non sexualised way. Could this be to her detriment as she is not a global superstar.

I understand that she may not want world domination but artists like her are most definitely marginalised and not of a common occurrence such as a the commercialised females.

Guardian journalist Rosie Swash comments “…obscuring of Rostron’s voice and face could well prove a barrier between her music and the mainstream.” Rosie gave this article the title of – Planningtorock: Bolton’s answer to Grace Jones, which suggests that she definitely sees her as a strong female influence on the music industry, someone that doesn’t care about her appearance but has a very strong look, someone that courts controversy on the basis of her looks for alternate reasons.

Artists like Rihanna could argue that their videos are just a bit of fun and the woman looks great very sexy and highly stylised video but the undertones are blatant sex.

In stark in contrast is a very different video below. I feel challenged by Janine Rostron‘s prominent and very striking imagery and more so with her refusal to conform. Janine Rostron‘s music is as strong and challenging as her image. I feel compelled to watch it more than once, just to make sure!