The first census of UK musicians has found there are still gaps for women when it comes to secure jobs and financial equality
Delivered by Help the musicians and on Union of Musicians (MU), the first Great Britain Musicians Census 2023 is a long-term project that will run every three to five years to measure changes in the music sector over time, respond to the needs of musicians and improve the future of the industry.
The last one Report on women musiciansis the fifth in a a series of insight reports each sharing findings on key census topics, such as LGBTQ+ musicians and mental well-being.
All musicians aged 16 and over “who earn or intend to earn money” from music were invited to respond to the survey. Walnut Unlimitedmarket research agency, was appointed to design the survey, manage the data collection and perform the initial data analysis.
In total, the census collected 5,867 responses from musicians across the UK – as of this March 2024 figure. Report on women musicians shows data related to 2,526 musicians (43%) who identify as female.
More than two-thirds (69%) of all women surveyed are in the 25-54 age group. There is a higher representation of younger women – with 47% of those aged 16 to 55 – but female representation drops significantly after the age of 54.
Women reported age discrimination (30%) at a significantly higher rate than men (21%); more women claim to have primary caregiving responsibilities than musicians of all other genders, and are more likely to report that caregiving responsibilities are a barrier to a career in music.
Conversely, female musicians have higher levels of both general and music education, with 14% more women having a music degree and 15% having postgraduate music qualifications.
Demographic chart of musicians (source: Report on women musicians)
The census also revealed that 88% of women reported that their careers had been limited in at least one way. Although this is prevalent in other gender groups, significant differences for women include the cost of education and the difficulty of finding childcare.
Additionally, 17% of musicians reported being in debt, rising to 30% among those with mental health issues and 28% for Black/Black British musicians.
Experiencing or witnessing discrimination was reported by 87% of female musicians, compared to 65% of male musicians. These challenges are heightened for female musicians by Global majority and for women with disabilities.
Additionally, 51% of women reported experiencing gender discrimination, compared to 6% of men. Sexual harassment disproportionately affects women in music, with 32% of women reporting being sexually harassed while working as a musician, compared to 5% of men.
A total of 11% of women said they had reported sexual harassment they had experienced or witnessed in music; in other sectors, 62% of those who reported work-related abuse or harassment as a career barrier were women.
Women’s certainty about their future in music is similar to that of musicians in general, with women slightly less likely than others to say they will continue to work as musicians both after one year (91% vs. 93%) and and after five years (83% vs. 84%).
In terms of pay, women experience little overall gender pay gap with average annual music earnings of £19,850 compared to £21,750 for men; the gap is greatest with women earning £34,001 a year.
Of all those surveyed, 152 musicians (3%) reported earning £70,000 or more from music each year – 79% of these were men and 19% were women.
Of the 79% of women performing musicians (compared to 80% overall), 11% of women reported being producers, 3% reported being DJs, and 2% of women reported being studio/mastering engineers and live sound engineers.
Women in the census were more likely to work in classical and musical theater than in any other genre. The biggest gender gap is in UK rap, with 8% of women reporting being in the genre, compared to 16% of musicians of all other genders.
The data beyond all census reports were collected through a 15-minute online voluntary survey conducted between January and March 2023.
“The Musician Census 2023 not only offers a unique insight into the make-up of the UK’s music community, it also paints a picture of the distinctive set of challenges that musicians face in order to sustain a career in music,” said the boss of Help Musicians Executive Director, Sarah Woods on their website.
To reach more musicians, the project has partnered with 20 representatives from across the music industry. This group of stakeholders helped shape and share the survey with their respective communities and provided feedback on the results – helping to make the census as inclusive as possible.
Participating organizations include Arts Council England, Association for Electronic Music, Association of British Orchestra, Attitude is Everything, Black Lives in Music, Drake Music Org, Drake Music Scotland, English Folk Dance and Song Society and Featured Artists Coalition.
Other partners include Ivors Academy, Music Managers Forum, PiPA, PPL, PRS Foundation, Punch Records, Royal Society of Musicians of Great Britain, Safe In Sound in NI, She Said So, The F List, The Independent Society of Musicians and UK Music .
Responses from these communities further revealed that female representation was higher among those from the global majority than among white respondents—54% of Asian respondents were female, as were 49% of black respondents. Females made up 43% of white respondents.
Musician Demographics — Global Majority Respondents
Overall, the longevity of women in music matches that of musicians of all other genders. However, there are 30% of musicians of all other genders with over 30 years of experience, compared to only 20% of women.
This statistic reflects the age profile of the census sample, where women tend to be younger and as such have not worked in music as long.
According to the study, multiple barriers keep women from leaving the music industry and more research is needed on this issue to alleviate them.
Additionally, 47% of global majority women reported experiencing racism and 38% reported witnessing others experiencing racism, compared to 21% of white women.
In conclusion, the report suggests that sector-wide efforts are needed to “turn the dial on women in music”.
These include removing structural barriers to female music careers; preventing and countering discrimination; improving equality between different groups of women in music; and facilitating women’s work as musicians in all musical genres and roles—ensuring that music is not gender-banned.
The charity Help Musicians has created new genre-based programs for women and gender-expansive musicians to support and invest in women’s creative and career development.
In light of the data from the Workplace and Sexual Harassment Census, the charity has redesigned its Harassment and Harassment service for musicians to ensure adequate recognition of sexual harassment and make the workplace safer.
The sister charity Help Musicians, Music matters also works to create safe spaces for women to develop peer support and access to mental health provision.
Furthermore, to create gender equality and better workplace measures, the Musicians’ Union (MU) continues to lobby on issues including childcare, maternity pay, carers and differences in the pay of women and men.
