FEATURE:
Release the Tension…
IN THIS PHOTO: Kylie Minogue for Vogue Australia, September 2023/PHOTO CREDIT: ALIQUE
Popland: Hopes That Ageism in the Music Industry Will Soon End
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I am including…
PHOTO CREDIT: Edward Cooke
Kylie Minogue in a feature next week when naming fifteen terrific 2023 albums by women. Her new album, Tension, was released on Friday (22nd September) and has received some of the best reviews of her career – up there with the praise she was getting for Light Years and Fever over twenty years ago. It shows that, regardless of how much time passes, an artist as innovative and talented cannot be precited or ignored. There are so many artists like Minogue who continue to make brilliant music through their career. Listen to Tension, and this is an artist at the top of her game. At fifty-five, some in the industry might think this is a moment to hold back. Many radio stations are wary of playing artists over a certain age. BBC Radio 1 were. When Tension’s first single, Padam Padam, came out in May, a lot of radio stations put it on their playlist. BBC Radio 1 did, though it took campaign and pressure from fans before they relented. As much as people would say otherwise, there are stations that are ageist. I put it out there a while ago that BBC Radio 1 are very reluctant to play an artist, especially a female artist, when they are over forty. Some came back and said that people like Beyoncé are being played. Sort of suggesting that was proof. You can be ageist if you play Beyoncé but do not feature Kylie Minogue! It is something impacts women more. It has done for decades. Things are starting to change, and I feel Kylie Minogue and the way people have responded to singles like Padam Padam and the Tension albums shows that it doesn’t matter what age an artist is. Minogue is going to write, record and deliver the music that feels real and right to her. She will wear what she wants on the stage!
That does not mean that this is how she dresses and is in real life. Why does the industry and particular radio stations still have the idea that once you get past a certain age you are reserved to certain station or irrelevant?! Why are many female artists viewed as past it or too old when they hit forty?! Even if it does impact all genders, women are more susceptible to it. Minogue spoke to The Sun on Sunday – I very much hate that paper, but I do love her music- and addressed the subject of ageism. Something she has been the recipient of for many years now. NME take up the story:
“Kylie Minogue has hit out at ageism and insisted she will continue to wear whatever she wants.
The singer who is now 55 and recently released her new album ‘Tension’, said that despite her age, she isn’t prepared to tone down her image.
She told The Sun On Sunday: “It’s not about being sexy, it’s about being yourself. I’m not going down to Tesco’s in thigh boots and a catsuit, but in Popland that is me. I don’t even call it sexy as even that feels passe.”
Minogue continued: “I am happy there is a strength in inhabiting your own playfulness, your own confidence and empowerment.
“It is an acceptance and kind of daring to feel confident with yourself and be at ease. I am really comfortable with what I am doing.”
She went on to say ageism will become irrelevant in the future.
The singer added: “Soon ageism will be so uncool you just won’t do it. Just let that person live and breathe in their space.”
She continued: “If people are talking about ageism in music, it is talking about it in relation to ‘we shouldn’t be talking about it’. It is almost irrelevant.
“I think younger generations are so open-minded they are not bothered about it”.
You only need to look around to see that Minogue is not the only woman in music who is wary of ageism. I think there is still this emphasis on younger artists on TikTok. Something seen as fresher and more relevant. Apparently lived experienced and that sense of brilliance you get from years in the industry is not as important as youthful energy. In Minogue’s case, she has both of these. So do many of her peers! From Madonna to Sheryl Crow, successful and hugely influential women have talked about being side-lined and seen as ‘too old’ – at the same time as many of the younger artists they inspired are being embraced. Minogue is subverting the industry and ensuring that artists are not labelled and defined when they get to a certain age. The fact they should not be told what to wear or what sort of music they should release. The fact Tension is as thrilling and exciting as any album this year shows age isn’t an issue. Belinda Carlisle has spoken about ageism and praised Madonna for tackling it. Even a new and younger artist like Blondshell (New Yorker Sabrina Teitelbaum) – who is still in her twenties – has felt the pressure of ageism and a sexist agenda when it comes to relevance. She told NME about it a few months ago:
“The LA-based artist who was speaking on NME‘s The Cover this week, is only 26 but the singer-songwriter said that she was made to feel that by her late teens and early twenties, she might be considered “too old” to make it in music. “There’s that horrible thing where people say you have to be under a certain age to be a musician, and I felt that because it was explicitly said to me,” she said. “The idea was always there through media and people talking about the music industry – there was always an emphasis on youth and this idea that you write your best songs before a certain age.”
The pressure to find success before she got too deep into adulthood was exacerbated by her gender, which added the need to fit into beauty and age standards.
“It affected my sense of urgency in a very painful and stressful way,” she said. “I was like, ‘I gotta make this album now, and then I have to find people to work with so that they can help me put it out and get it heard. And this one has to be great because I don’t have a million tries’.”
She added: “I don’t want anyone listening to my music who would be like, ‘She’s not young enough’ or who would think I’m less interesting because I’m over 25. Alright, don’t listen to it, don’t come to the show!”.
There is this thing where the industry still wants women especially to be younger. Maybe they feel radio and online audiences are mainly younger people. Perhaps that music is only seen as important or real if they come from a younger artist. What happened when BBC Radio 1 initially sidelined Padam Padam, listeners of the station were saying it was not a factor. Even if your main demographic is younger, that does not mean slightly older artists are not going to connect. If anything, the experience and stature that someone like Kylie Minogue has is as powerful and important as anything coming from an artist in their teens or twenties. Many younger women are sexualised and promoted because of their looks and sexuality, whereas a female artist over forty, if they dress sexily and exactly how they want, is seen as unseemly or inappropriate. It is that double standard that does not really apply to male artists (The Rolling Stones, for instance, are seen as embracing older age and their energy and swagger is embraced). Male artists are subject to ageism too, though there is a greater prolificacy when you look to female artists. This People interview also found Minogue talking about ageism in the music industry:
“Padam Padam” dropped as the first Tension single and became your first solo top-10 hit in the U.K. since “All The Lovers.” Women, unfortunately, tend to have a bit of a harder time getting radio play and chart success when they're no longer young adults. But you are in your mid-50s with your biggest hit in over 10 years. Was there ever a time where you thought it wouldn't happen again?
I'm trying to think of when, because this is all I've ever done, so for me, I just keep going. Sometimes it's more successful than other times, but I've never had that thought come from me. It's been projected on me from outside. I remember a few years ago being in a lot of interview situations where I would be asked, "What age do you think it is still OK to be in pop music, or to be sexy in pop?" It was really awkward, and I felt like I had to justify my presence there.
So, what's happening now very organically, I'm talking about it with you because it's happened. I've not been out there flying that flag. Of course, it's a great moment for me — but it's a great moment for other artists, women particularly, who have this kind of prejudice or bias against them. So, like I say, I didn't set out to do this. I've also been the youngest kid where I had to fight to be heard or just occupy my space.
The negative then was, "Well, you’re 18. what do you know?" So, through all the decades of my career, there's been something, and here we are. I'm really proud to be representing this moment, and guess what? The earth didn't cave in, and everyone's having a great time. This is the age I am. What can I do?
A good song is a good song. It shouldn't really matter who it comes from.
And I think it should matter less and less. You've got Elton John [making hits] — we can go through all of this. It's kind of boring to go through. But perhaps [radio] programmers who may have felt shackled to that way of thinking, it's liberating for them as well to go, "Hey, we've got more opportunity here and more scope to be really inclusive,” and that's just a modern way of thinking”.
Let’s hope that things do change and legendary artists like Kylie Minogue releasing such fun, vibrant and hugely stunning music is a sign that age is never a factor (at least it shouldn’t be). An artist should be judged on their music alone. The discussion will continue on - though the success of Tension will hopefully show that ageism is not cool; it is an insult to artists that have so much to offer. The industry needs to change its attitudes, ageism and prejudices, and realise that youth does not translate to significance and importance. There is room on all stations for artists of all ages. So long as the music is striking a chord and is great, why is there still an issue?! Things need to change. They need to stop their ways, open their minds, and…
RELEASE the tension.