Document Type
Thesis
First Faculty Advisor
Allison Kaminaga
Second Faculty Advisor
Alex Perullo
Keywords
gender; Billboard Top Charts; representation
Publisher
Bryant University
Rights Management
CC - BY - NC - ND
Abstract
This study investigates women's representation, or lack thereof, in the music industry by examining Billboard charts from 2016-2023, which corresponds with the years that Spotify began their "Wrapped" program. The studied years are also directly related to the timeline in which algorithms have generated personalized recommendations, playlists, and radio stations based on users' previous listening history and preferences. In recent years, the demographic makeup of the music industry has been benchmarked by equity imbalance and gender inequality. The research being conducted analyzes how the significance of male artist dominance brings forth the main barriers that female producers, songwriters, and artists face. This includes, but is not limited to, stereotyping, objectification, and being a statistical minority. The study uses a regression analysis, testing a variety of variables including year, artist(s), song, sex of artist, genre of music, subgenre of music, record label(s), and whether the artist is signed under a major label. The listed variables will be tested against the dependent variable of ranking, which ultimately correlate with overall artist success rate. The analysis will provide findings and guidelines that the industry can follow to increase equity among genders. Additionally, it will explore the implications and opportunities the music industry, as well as the labor force, could capitalize on to further address gender equity and position themselves to bring the issue to light.
