There’s been a lot of criticism lobbed recently at Australian music festival organisers. The flak has been aimed specifically at the bookers of these events, with critics insisting they aren’t doing a good enough job of booking female acts.
It’s been an issue for some time, but it recently got thrust to the forefront of the Aussie music industry dialogue after the organisers of Canberra’s Spilt Milk festival were criticised for having just one lady on their lineup of 16 acts.
Critics then took on popular Aussie bush doof Strawberry Fields and heavy music festival UNIFY Gathering. In each case, bookers responded by reminding fans that they didn’t purposely omit ladies from the lineups and that booking a festival lineup is hair-pullingly complex.
No one’s here to argue with that. Booking a lineup is stressful and you have to deal with issues like artist availability and of course agreeing to a price for the artist. But we’ve decided to shine a spotlight on some female Aussie musos anyway.
Partly it’s a reminder that there’s more female talent out there in Australia than just what you might hear on the radio but it’s also a reminder to you, the music fans, to throw your support behind your favourite female Aussie musos.
