FEATURE:
‘The 30 Club’
IN THIS PHOTO: Rita Ora (who is thirty-two) is among several female artists not being playlisted by BBC Radio 1 anymore
Why Sexist Ageism on the BBC Radio 1 Playlist Is Especially Worrying and Regressive
_________
TUCKED away and something…
IN THIS PHOTO: Ellie Goulding
that a social media friend of mine posted, there is something rotten happening at BBC Radio 1. I am sure that this also applies to other big stations who have a ‘younger demographic’, but it is worrying when radio stations impose age limits. Whereas BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 6 Music do not limit when it comes to age and which artists are played in that sense, why is BBC Radio 1 so beholden to being ‘trendy’, ‘cool’ and ‘young’? It is a station who has broadcasters over the age of thirty, and there are male artists played on BBC Radio 1 that are over thirty. Even if this does not apply to all female artists, there are some big and popular names who have passed the age of thirty who are no longer being played. The Birmingham Mail reports more:
“BBC Radio 1 deemed some female singers "too old" for listeners, according to reports. BBC Radio 1 has stopped playing the likes of Katy Perry and Rita Ora, The Mirror says.
Ellie Goulding, Shakira and Pink have also been snubbed by Radio One and left off the A, B and C playlists. An industry source last night told the newspaper: “The Radio 1 senior executive team try to justify their discrimination against any female artist over 30 by attributing their behaviour to their audiences’ taste.
“In fact, the audience is far less discriminatory – that’s supported by Spotify and Apple data. For an institution like Radio 1, which holds such power in determining chart success, it’s not acceptable to have such bias. They’ll cite female artists they play, but many feature on male artists’ records, like Bebe Rexha and David Guetta, or Ellie Goulding and Calvin Harris. It’s forcing women in their 30s to feature on records they wouldn’t ordinarily do to ensure Radio 1 coverage”.
There will be people jumping in that are precise when it comes to accusations. Maybe the labels of Rita Ora and Ellie Goulding no longer want to be played by BBC Radio 1 or have come to some sort of agreement. They are not fresh artists, but they are incredibly popular and relevant. Also, are artists like Harry Styles going to slip from the schedule even though he has been a major artists for a long time?! I would expect more female artists have been ignored and pushed aside. Years ago, Madonna came out and slammed ageist stations. I doubt her music will be played on BBC Radio 1 anymore, even though she is one of the most influential artists ever – but, at sixty-four, it is way past the age of thirty! I can’t understand why female artists would be deemed too old compared to men. How does that logic work?! Male artists like Ed Sheeran are sure to still be in the mix but, at thirty-six, Ellie Goulding is seen as irrelevant. Before people jump in, I am trying to find out whether artists like Rita Ora are being snubbed for a reason. Ellie Goulding is about to release her album, Higher Than Heaven, on 7th April. At a mere thirty-two, Rita Ora is apparently too old and past it to appeal to the BBC Radio 1 audience! There is a third studio album coming this year.
Both of these women are priming new albums and would be perfect to put on the playlists. I can appreciate there is a wave of brilliant rising female artists emerging such as DYLAN, FLO, Caity Baser, and Cat Burns. But there is more than enough room for other women. Why can a station like BBC Radio 6 Music play female artists of all ages, but BBC Radio 1 reject women over thirty!? They say age is only a number, and that it doesn’t matter how old you are. When it comes to music, relevance and appeal should be ageless. Why is an artist who is twenty-nine much more meaningful and marketable than someone is, say, thirty-one?! Also, what message does that send to young women coming through. Can you work at a station like BBC Radio 1 if you are past thirty?! Even if they have staff older than that, it seems strange that their ageism applies to the music played only. Many would say that BBC Radio 1 is a station that tries to reflect changing tastes, the most current music for a younger audience. That is fair. A lot of the playlist and artists are very much primed at the TikTok generation. There is nothing wrong with a station that focuses on younger artists. Having that as your entire business model and mantra is insane. And, as I have said, why are male artists over thirty not consigned to the bin?!
IN THIS PHOTO: Dua Lipa
If you are running a station and playing artists who are all under thirty, how do you explain male artists over the age of thirty on the playlist? I can appreciate how it literally isn’t the case that all female artists over thirty are relegated from the playlists. It is a worrying development that artists who are still very current and vibrant are somehow seen as too old or insignificant. BBC Radio 1 does not even deal solely with artists who are brand-new. You can be a twenty-nine-year-old female artist who has produced a few albums and still played, but there is this magic cut-off. I predict that other artists will soon find themselves exiled. It is heartbreaking to think that someone like Dua Lipa, who is currently twenty-seven, might be no longer favoured at BBC Radio 1 after all that she had done. Taylor Swift is thirty-three and still played at BBC Radio 1, but you suspect that her days may be numbered. It is insulting to these artists who have given so much and rely on radio playlists for exposure. BBC Radio 1 has plenty of room for artists over thirty. I don’t think there are any reports coming out of male artists over that age not being playlisted. Why then are women being targeted?! No matter what way you spin and rationalise, the simple fact is that woman have always been and are definitely now given an expiration date. It is not only BBC Radio 1. They are not seen as fashionable or sexy if they are over thirty.
IN THIS PHOTO: Kylie Minogue
Music should not have any barriers or prejudices when it comes to age and, as sexism and gender imbalances rages still, ageism is another discriminatory practise that is hugely damaging. How depressing for a young artist like Little Simz for example worrying she may subject to ageism next year (she is currently twenty-nine). I am not sure it even applies to Pop music, but it does seem like Pop artists especially are subject to ageism. If course, women in all genres will share their experiences. Pop has always had an age issue. One cannot say that ageism doesn’t exist anymore. It blatantly and unashamedly does! It is so unfair on women in music. Festivals like Glastonbury have blamed pipeline issues for there being no female headliners. Labels are not signing women or promoting them properly. Young female artists are not being given opportunities so, when it comes to hustle and being noticed, they rely on huge stations like BBC Radio 1. If there is this ’30 Club’ where they are almost killed off shockingly young and tragically, how the hell do we solve a pipeline problem?! I will wrap up in a minute. There are loads of articles online discussing ageism in music and how everyone from Madonna to Sheryl Crow have spoken out against it. Even Kylie Minogue has. The whole industry has a sexist ageism issue, and what is being done to correct this? I want to source an article that Adam Cherian wrote for Afterglow in 2021. He writes how stars and successful female artists are getting younger and younger. Whilst he looks at forty as being an age where many women are being wiped off playlists, it is a huge middle finger to these amazing artists. It is distributing that, a) thirty is seen as too old or not cool enough for a young listening audience and, b) that relevance and appeal is being judged on age and not the quality of the music:
“On Aug. 21, 2000, Madonna released one of the biggest hits of her career. “Music” is a bombastic dance-pop track that hit number one on the Billboard hot 100 charts by early September that same year, making it Madonna’s 12th and, currently, final No. 1 on the chart. At the turn of the century, Madonna was still one of the biggest artists in the industry. But even though she was on top of the world, this chart-topping achievement was impressive for a different reason: At the time, Madonna was 42 years old, making her part of the exclusive club of women over 40 with a Billboard number one hit.
The glaring lack of women over 40 snagging No. 1 hits is unsurprising. At the time, “Music” was the fifth No. 1 hit from a woman over 40. This would only be topped in 2016, with Sia’s “Cheap Thrills” finally breaking the dry-spell. Then, years later, came Mariah Carey with her smash hit “All I Want for Christmas is You.” 2019 was the last time ’til date that a woman over 40 has taken that coveted No. 1 spot. Some women in music today have been able to beat this and continue to create, however. Beyonce, for example, continues to lead the way for women in music, at her stunning age of 40. The fact that only seven women were able to make No. 1 hits is commendable on their parts. That being said, how low that number is is concerning, and begs the question: Why is it so difficult for women to gain recognition once they get well into adulthood?
The music industry — specifically pop music — has historically been ageist. Ageism is defined as the prejudice against a person on the basis of their age. When discussing how the music industry contributes to this system of oppression, the cultural attitudes towards people of a certain age are revealed. For example, the fact that it is perfectly acceptable for record labels to not sign talented artists on the basis that they are “unrelatable” and “too old,” shows that many people find this type of discrimination acceptable. Madonna is a perfect example of this phenomenon: She went from being one of the biggest female artists in the world to failing to chart her most recent album, Madame X. In a 2016 speech at the Billboard Women in Music Awards, she called out the industry on its “relentless abuse” of mature women trying to succeed in this musical landscape.
The discussion of ageism in the music industry must be intersectional, however, as it is clear that men are not held to the same standard. Just this year, the super-duo Silk Sonic debuted and blew up the charts with hits like “Leave the Door Open” and “Skate.” Both members — Anderson Paak. and Bruno Mars — are in their late 30s. In contrast, the older a woman in the industry becomes, the closer critics will look at their appearance, art, and overall personality. Even worse, women have to compete with the inevitable new crop of girls that will rise in pop music. A classic example of this is Christina Aguilera’s 2010 album Bionic. Reviewers of this album berated Aguilera for daring to make songs about sex saying that it was getting “old,” and went as far as comparing it to her older work. The most glaring way in which reviewers showed their ageist ways was the insistence on comparing Aguilera to then-newcomer Lady Gaga. Bionic tanked, and though Aguilera would go on to have some success in the 2010s, she has not been able to replicate the success of her older material.
This combination of age and gender discrimination may seem superficial when talking about celebrities. However, the way in which pop culture seems to show this intersection of people has influence on everyday people. In a survey conducted by Forbes and Out-Wit Inc., 80% of women in the workplace have experienced some form of gendered ageism. Older women often feel ignored, with younger colleagues taking precedence over them. So even if it may seem humorous to see wealthy celebrities complain about their woes, there are real-world consequences for not making older women visible in the industry.
Ageism not only affects maturing women, but actually has grave consequences for younger artists as well. The debuting pop stars of today are becoming younger and younger. Olivia Rodrigo, for example, debuted her serious music career at the age of 17 in January earlier this year. Showcasing young talent is nothing new, however, and has been seen by the likes of many stars, such as Britney Spears. This reveals an underlying obsession with youth that the music industry seems to have. Think of Billie Eilish, who debuted at the young age of 13, and has recounted in interviews the abuse she has received as a minor within the industry. Not only was she facing that abuse, but was also receiving disturbing attention by predatorial men waiting for her to turn 18. Young girls in the industry are constantly being brought up and often groomed within the industry, not for their talents, but for their relatability and looks.
Women within the industry have accepted for decades the mistreatment they will inevitably face. Gendered ageism is only one aspect of this inequity, but it is a prevalent trend nonetheless. Ultimately, though, there needs to be more accountability on the industry itself for deliberately edging out the veteran women within it. Audiences as well need to change their attitudes towards women and age for the art of women to be taken seriously”.
IN THIS PHOTO: Harry Styles regularly features on BBC Radio 1’s playlists and, even though he is twenty-nine, his place on the playlists is going to be secure for years to come
It is hugely concerning reading about BBC Radio 1. This is not a new thing. If in the past women past forty were being moved down the dial and could no longer dance alongside younger artists, the bar is being lowered even further! Thirty is seen as an upper age limit for no logical reason. Listeners are not calling for women over thirty to be slowly taken away from the BBC Radio 1 playlists. It very much seems to be driven by management and controllers. If a previous BBC Radio 1 favourite like Charli XCX was to discover that she had to rely on other stations to promote her music, in spite of the fact she is immensely popular and one of the greatest artists of her generation, then is anyone safe?! Charli XCX is thirty now, so you do fear her next studio album might not make it to the playlist as Sucker (2014) did. This is the same artist who is, arguably, even better now than she was back in 2014. The idiotic lack of logic is mind-boggling! Ageism is a problem that mostly applies to women. There is an inherent ideal of desirability. If they look young and sexy, then that is what listeners and trendy stations want. If they get beyond thirty or forty, then they may not be as attractive. It is flabbergasting! It needs to stop! The latest news around ageism striking and affecting brilliant female artists should compel change and discussion. BBC Radio 1’s latest move and discrimination is…
SO angering and sickening.