L
LoafingOaf
Guest
NPR: All Things Considered
Copyright 2003 National Public Radio, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Tuesday, April 29, 2003
Profile: Lack of female producers in the music industry
MELISSA BLOCK, host: If you glance through your CD collection, chances
are you won't find the names of many women listed on the credits as
producer. In fact, if you went back to your 33s, 45s and even 78s,
their absence would be notable. There are various reasons why there have
been very few female record producers, especially in rock 'n' roll. In
the second of two stories on the subject, NPR's Neda Ulaby talks to
women in the industry and asks them why.
NEDA ULABY reporting:
Vicki Wickham has spend 40 years hovering discreetly in the wings of
the pop music world. If anyone would know about famous female rock
producers, it would be she. But Wickham couldn't even name one.
Ms. VICKI WICKHAM: It's horrifying. I just keep thinking that there
must be, but no, there isn't. There absolutely isn't. It's so weird
'cause in the back of my head, I'm still trying to think of the women
that there are out there and there just aren't.
ULABY: Wickham helped kick off Swinging London. As producer of the
1960s TV show "Ready, Steady, Go!" she introduced Britain to The
Rolling Stones and The Beatles. Then Wickham managed Dusty Springfield
and, much later, Morrissey. She even co-wrote a hit.
(Soundbite of "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me")
Ms. DUSTY SPRINGFIELD: (Singing) You don't have to say you love me.
Just be close at hand.
ULABY: Wickham says a lot of women produce records; they just don't
get credit for it.
Ms. WICKHAM: When you read the credits on an album, they really
don't tell you who does what. They really don't. And most of the
really major producers have a team that work with them, that do it with
them, that write some of the songs that, you know. It's very
misleading, and a lot of people get left off or their credits are pushed
down. Of course, there's always, inevitably, egos involved.
ULABY: Women with permanent production credits tend to be well-known
performers, like Missy Elliott or Linda Perry, who fronted the band 4
Non-Blondes. There's no female Phil Spector, Butch Vig or Dr. Dre.
That's partly because recording is a new science, and women sound
engineers, like Leslie Ann Jones, are a relatively recent phenomenon.
Ms. LESLIE ANN JONES (Sound Engineer): But it's hard for people to
perceive them as someone who is then taking control of the whole
project.
ULABY: Jones is director of music recording and scoring at George
Lucas' Skywalker Sound. She started her career with dreams of becoming
a record producer. Now she produces jazz and classical albums. She
says those genres are more welcoming than rock 'n' roll.
Ms. JONES: There seems to be a lot of typecasting in our industry.
ULABY: There's also a lot of sex and drugs.
Ms. NONA HENDRYX (Singer/Producer/Composer): It's a boys' club. I
mean, it's plain and simple.
ULABY: Nona Hendryx is a singer, producer and composer.
(Soundbite of song)
LaBELLE: (Singing) Say it! We're gonna save the world today!
ULABY: Hendryx was part of the 1970s soul diva trio LaBelle, and
she's worked with Laura Nyro, the Talking Heads and Alice Cooper.
Hendryx says that rock 'n' roll and arrested development can go hand in
hand.
Ms. HENDRYX: I don't usually work with people like that. I've
worked with pretty much producers and engineers who are sensitive.
ULABY: LaBelle's first album was co-produced by Vicki Wickham. And,
in fact, when women produce rock records they usually produce other
women.
(Soundbite of "If I Could Turn Back Time")
CHER: (Singing) If I could turn back time...
ULABY: Diane Warren doesn't usually produce songs for Cher. She's
generally too busy composing top 40 pop ballads.
Ms. DIANE WARREN (Songwriter): I'm not sure if a guy would deal with
a female producer. You know what I mean? I don't know if Linda Perry
would produce a male act. You don't see a lot of women, you know,
producing bands. Are they going to produce Aerosmith? Are they going
to go tell Steven Tyler how to sing?
ULABY: Trina Shoemaker would. She recorded the group Queens of the
Stone Age.
(Soundbite of song)
QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE: (Singing) You could see ...(unintelligible)
Vicodin, marijuana, ecstasy and alcohol.
Ms. TRINA SHOEMAKER (Producer): I can rock out like a dude, and
that's another reason that I do really well in the studio. I can turn
a guitar up as loud as any guy. If you want me to turn up the drums,
I'll turn them up so loud that they will melt your face.
ULABY: Shoemaker thinks it's ironic that women have been shut out of
producing, because much of the job basically corresponds to what's been
called 'women's work.' Producers take care of people and clean up
messes. They're called upon to schlepp snacks or coax musicians into
the best possible performances on tape. And Shoemaker says for that,
being female is a plus.
Ms. SHOEMAKER: But they want to please me. I'm a girl and I'm
looking cute in here. They're thinking, 'Oh, she wants me to go again.
All right. Sure, honey, I'll play it again.' And I work that to my
advantage. I flirt when I need to to get what I want on tape from men
or women. It makes no difference.
ULABY: Both men and women find it easier to break into producing
these days. Equipment has become less expensive and easier to use. But
Shoemaker says a final barrier to women remains: none of the guys
she's dated could tolerate the hectic lifestyle and brutal hours that
come with producing rock 'n' roll. And like many of her erstwhile
female mentors, Shoemaker's priorities have changed.
Ms. SHOEMAKER: I want to meet a partner. I want to meet somebody
intelligent and dedicated. And I've now, after 19 years in this
business, started to realize it's not going to happen in this business,
and so I will leave this business.
ULABY: Trina Shoemaker plans to go to college, find a boyfriend and
start a family. But first, she must wrap up a record for the
Australian indie rock group Something For Kate. Shoemaker says she
expects it to be the last album she will ever produce. Neda Ulaby, NPR
News, Washington.
(Soundbite of song)
Unidentified Group: (Singing) Hold it in your hands. Hold it in
your hands. Hold it in your hands.
Unidentified Man: (Singing) Believe in me. Believe in me. Believe.
Unidentified Group: (Singing) Show me how.
ROBERT SIEGEL (Host): You're listening to ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from
NPR News.
---- INDEX REFERENCES ----
NEWS SUBJECT: English language content; Corporate/Industrial News; Transcript; Content Types; Music; Arts & Entertainment; Arts/Entertainment; Political/General News (ENGL CCAT NTRA NCAT GMUSIC ART GENT GCAT)
MARKET SECTOR: Consumer Cyclical (CYC)
INDUSTRY: Media: Recorded Music; Film, Television & Music; All Entertainment & Leisure; Media (IARZ MOV ENT MED)
PRODUCT: Leisure; Media (DLE DME)
REGION: United States; United States; North American Countries (US USA NAMZ)
Word Count: 1097
4/29/03 ATCON (No Page)
END OF DOCUMENT
Copyright 2003 National Public Radio, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Tuesday, April 29, 2003
Profile: Lack of female producers in the music industry
MELISSA BLOCK, host: If you glance through your CD collection, chances
are you won't find the names of many women listed on the credits as
producer. In fact, if you went back to your 33s, 45s and even 78s,
their absence would be notable. There are various reasons why there have
been very few female record producers, especially in rock 'n' roll. In
the second of two stories on the subject, NPR's Neda Ulaby talks to
women in the industry and asks them why.
NEDA ULABY reporting:
Vicki Wickham has spend 40 years hovering discreetly in the wings of
the pop music world. If anyone would know about famous female rock
producers, it would be she. But Wickham couldn't even name one.
Ms. VICKI WICKHAM: It's horrifying. I just keep thinking that there
must be, but no, there isn't. There absolutely isn't. It's so weird
'cause in the back of my head, I'm still trying to think of the women
that there are out there and there just aren't.
ULABY: Wickham helped kick off Swinging London. As producer of the
1960s TV show "Ready, Steady, Go!" she introduced Britain to The
Rolling Stones and The Beatles. Then Wickham managed Dusty Springfield
and, much later, Morrissey. She even co-wrote a hit.
(Soundbite of "You Don't Have To Say You Love Me")
Ms. DUSTY SPRINGFIELD: (Singing) You don't have to say you love me.
Just be close at hand.
ULABY: Wickham says a lot of women produce records; they just don't
get credit for it.
Ms. WICKHAM: When you read the credits on an album, they really
don't tell you who does what. They really don't. And most of the
really major producers have a team that work with them, that do it with
them, that write some of the songs that, you know. It's very
misleading, and a lot of people get left off or their credits are pushed
down. Of course, there's always, inevitably, egos involved.
ULABY: Women with permanent production credits tend to be well-known
performers, like Missy Elliott or Linda Perry, who fronted the band 4
Non-Blondes. There's no female Phil Spector, Butch Vig or Dr. Dre.
That's partly because recording is a new science, and women sound
engineers, like Leslie Ann Jones, are a relatively recent phenomenon.
Ms. LESLIE ANN JONES (Sound Engineer): But it's hard for people to
perceive them as someone who is then taking control of the whole
project.
ULABY: Jones is director of music recording and scoring at George
Lucas' Skywalker Sound. She started her career with dreams of becoming
a record producer. Now she produces jazz and classical albums. She
says those genres are more welcoming than rock 'n' roll.
Ms. JONES: There seems to be a lot of typecasting in our industry.
ULABY: There's also a lot of sex and drugs.
Ms. NONA HENDRYX (Singer/Producer/Composer): It's a boys' club. I
mean, it's plain and simple.
ULABY: Nona Hendryx is a singer, producer and composer.
(Soundbite of song)
LaBELLE: (Singing) Say it! We're gonna save the world today!
ULABY: Hendryx was part of the 1970s soul diva trio LaBelle, and
she's worked with Laura Nyro, the Talking Heads and Alice Cooper.
Hendryx says that rock 'n' roll and arrested development can go hand in
hand.
Ms. HENDRYX: I don't usually work with people like that. I've
worked with pretty much producers and engineers who are sensitive.
ULABY: LaBelle's first album was co-produced by Vicki Wickham. And,
in fact, when women produce rock records they usually produce other
women.
(Soundbite of "If I Could Turn Back Time")
CHER: (Singing) If I could turn back time...
ULABY: Diane Warren doesn't usually produce songs for Cher. She's
generally too busy composing top 40 pop ballads.
Ms. DIANE WARREN (Songwriter): I'm not sure if a guy would deal with
a female producer. You know what I mean? I don't know if Linda Perry
would produce a male act. You don't see a lot of women, you know,
producing bands. Are they going to produce Aerosmith? Are they going
to go tell Steven Tyler how to sing?
ULABY: Trina Shoemaker would. She recorded the group Queens of the
Stone Age.
(Soundbite of song)
QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE: (Singing) You could see ...(unintelligible)
Vicodin, marijuana, ecstasy and alcohol.
Ms. TRINA SHOEMAKER (Producer): I can rock out like a dude, and
that's another reason that I do really well in the studio. I can turn
a guitar up as loud as any guy. If you want me to turn up the drums,
I'll turn them up so loud that they will melt your face.
ULABY: Shoemaker thinks it's ironic that women have been shut out of
producing, because much of the job basically corresponds to what's been
called 'women's work.' Producers take care of people and clean up
messes. They're called upon to schlepp snacks or coax musicians into
the best possible performances on tape. And Shoemaker says for that,
being female is a plus.
Ms. SHOEMAKER: But they want to please me. I'm a girl and I'm
looking cute in here. They're thinking, 'Oh, she wants me to go again.
All right. Sure, honey, I'll play it again.' And I work that to my
advantage. I flirt when I need to to get what I want on tape from men
or women. It makes no difference.
ULABY: Both men and women find it easier to break into producing
these days. Equipment has become less expensive and easier to use. But
Shoemaker says a final barrier to women remains: none of the guys
she's dated could tolerate the hectic lifestyle and brutal hours that
come with producing rock 'n' roll. And like many of her erstwhile
female mentors, Shoemaker's priorities have changed.
Ms. SHOEMAKER: I want to meet a partner. I want to meet somebody
intelligent and dedicated. And I've now, after 19 years in this
business, started to realize it's not going to happen in this business,
and so I will leave this business.
ULABY: Trina Shoemaker plans to go to college, find a boyfriend and
start a family. But first, she must wrap up a record for the
Australian indie rock group Something For Kate. Shoemaker says she
expects it to be the last album she will ever produce. Neda Ulaby, NPR
News, Washington.
(Soundbite of song)
Unidentified Group: (Singing) Hold it in your hands. Hold it in
your hands. Hold it in your hands.
Unidentified Man: (Singing) Believe in me. Believe in me. Believe.
Unidentified Group: (Singing) Show me how.
ROBERT SIEGEL (Host): You're listening to ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from
NPR News.
---- INDEX REFERENCES ----
NEWS SUBJECT: English language content; Corporate/Industrial News; Transcript; Content Types; Music; Arts & Entertainment; Arts/Entertainment; Political/General News (ENGL CCAT NTRA NCAT GMUSIC ART GENT GCAT)
MARKET SECTOR: Consumer Cyclical (CYC)
INDUSTRY: Media: Recorded Music; Film, Television & Music; All Entertainment & Leisure; Media (IARZ MOV ENT MED)
PRODUCT: Leisure; Media (DLE DME)
REGION: United States; United States; North American Countries (US USA NAMZ)
Word Count: 1097
4/29/03 ATCON (No Page)
END OF DOCUMENT
