Charli XCX on being a woman in the music industry

Brut America

Charli XCX has a rocking career, an ongoing stream of hits, and a devoted fanbase. But, she tells Brut, there are still plenty of challenges facing women in the music industry.

Transcript

00:00I think when it comes to how female artists, executives, writers, producers, directors

00:11are treated, there's still this sort of doubt surrounding their validity in what they do.

00:16Like, oh, can you really do that on your own? Can you really write that song alone? Do you really

00:21direct? Like, there always seems to be this sort of disbelief that a woman can actually, like,

00:26stand on her own two feet and do something without the help of somebody else. And so,

00:32I do think that the more the conversation continues, the better that will become.

00:50I think that gender equality in the music industry is still very much an ongoing conversation.

00:55I think there definitely have been improvements, but I think

00:58it's kind of one of those topics which, the more it's talked about, the better.

01:18Lillipa called him out in his speech. I said something online. I think Pink said something

01:22online as well about how ridiculous that comment was. Like, those kind of actions,

01:26I think, are very important. And I think the conversation always needs to be continued to

01:34be had. And the more vocal artists are, the better the situation will become. However,

01:41I do think there are some brilliantly talented females who are in the industry who are being

01:49extremely vocal and kind of helping reset the balance of that. Artists like Lizzo,

01:54artists like Christine in the Queens, I find them inspiring because I feel like they just

02:00really speak their own language. And I feel like the way that they present their vision is extremely

02:05confident. It doesn't feel diluted. It doesn't feel like other people have kind of influenced

02:11their opinions. It feels very true to who they are. And yeah, I really love artists who stay

02:17true to who they are. And that's definitely what I try to do. So when it comes to collaborating,

02:23which I feel like is such an integral part of my artistry and staying true to who I am as an

02:29artist, I like to collaborate with people who kind of think the same way as I do. Advice I

02:34would give to younger female artists entering the music industry now is to just really be aware of

02:40all of your surroundings, understand the deals, contracts, whatever it is that you're signing,

02:46and have people close to you who you really trust. And also just follow your instinct because

02:54you know yourself best.

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