Abstract:
This honors thesis addresses the gender bias of the country music industry. Women are
severely underrepresented on country radio, leading to more underrepresentation on
touring and festival lineups, award show nominations, streaming playlists, and more.
Many believe the myth that “women don’t want to hear women.” However, data shows
that audiences are eager to hear country music from female voices. Fans have craved
country music from female artists since the birth of the genre, as the genre was shaped by
iconic female voices and songs. Many female artists have had successes in album sales
and tours within recent years, proving that country music fans are supportive of women
in the genre. To research for this project, I gathered data from Billboard charts and
Mediabase radio airplay charts to exemplify the gap between male and female
representation.
