Music Publishers Association

Click here to read the International Women’s Day Message from our CEO & Head of Diversity, Equality and Inclusion

 

During March, we celebrate women’s history month in the UK. This is a month-long celebration of the vital role of women in history and the contributions made by women in all areas of our society.

This year, International Women’s Day is on Tuesday 8^th of March. This day is celebrated globally and recognises women’s incredible achievements, raises awareness and encourages others to advocate for gender equality. It is also a day when women from all different backgrounds and cultures get together to fight for gender equality and women’s rights.

Background
In 1909 around 15,000 women took to the streets in New York, protesting long work hours, low pay, and the lack of voting rights in New York City.
Originally called National Woman’s Day, the historic annual celebration spread across the world (officially celebrated in 1911).

In 1975, the United Nations officially recognised International Women’s Day, and, in 1996, began to adopt an annual theme for every year.
The first theme was “Celebrating the Past, Planning for the Future.”

The theme for this year
This year’s theme is #BreakTheBias which focuses on creating a world free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination, and creating gender equality in workplaces, communities, schools and more.

How to get involved
There are several ways to celebrate and get involved on this very important day! You can attend a virtual event, share famous quotes on social media, empower the women in your lives by supporting them in their ambitions and careers, fundraise for female-focused charities and by listening to them because we all have a story to tell…

Watch this space for blogs, quotes and messages from our women (and men) staff and Board members.

Helen Choudhury
Head of Diversity, Equality and Inclusion

 For more information:
International Women’s Day 2022 (internationalwomensday.com) 

British Women in History – They all made a difference!
Click on the links below to read and learn about some of the contributions British women have made to our society.

Famous British Women | Britain Visitor – Travel Guide To Britain (britain-visitor.com)
Inspirational black British women you should know about | London Evening Standard | Evening Standard
5 incredible historical British South Asian women to inspire you this Women’s History Month — British Asian Women’s Magazine (britishasianwomensmagazine.com)
The History of South Asian Women in the UK (therightscollective.com)
Black women in Britain — Google Arts & Culture
British Asian women – Women’s History Network (womenshistorynetwork.org)
Women in History | English Heritage (english-heritage.org.uk)

Jackie Alway OBE, EVP International, Legal and Industry Affairs, Universal Music Publishing Group – MPA Board Member
Jackie is also Chair of MCPS, Chair of the music publishers’ global trade body, the ICMP and former chair of the MPA.

1. The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is #BreaktheBias, what are some of the biases women face in music and what needs to be done to change that?
I’ve been incredibly lucky in my career to have had kind and generous male friends and colleagues to work with and have benefited from the advice of some great male mentors. But I’ve only been able to focus properly on my work in the industry because my amazing husband gave up his own career to look after our children, facing his own struggles as a pioneer of the ‘Dads and Littluns’ community.  Career progression can be so much harder for anyone trying to juggle childcare with work without this kind of support.  In a part-time or job share arrangement, the double injustice is to feel the need to cover more ground than is humanly possible within the hours available and then be judged by peers as being less ambitious or committed as a result of not being able to work full time. This unconscious bias against those who need to work flexibly is hopefully lessening as we all adapt to hybrid working.  Working primary carers deserve medals, not question marks over their commitment.

2. Is it important for young girls to have women role models to look up to?
It’s really important – although a female exec. friend said to me recently that now women are filling senior roles in the industry with increasing frequency, the next generation is wondering why it took their predecessors so long. If it looks so possible to go for the top roles now, I guess my generation has made some real progress.

3. If you could go back to the start of your career, what advice would you give yourself?
Stay calm and (usually) all will be well.

Helen Choudhury, Head of Diversity, Equality and Inclusion – MPA Staff Member
Helen has managed strategic diversity, inclusion and human rights programmes throughout her 20-year career and has also worked voluntarily for animal welfare charities and environmental organisations.

 1. Do you feel that it’s important for young girls to have women role models to look up to?
It is important for young girls to have women role models who they can relate to and aspire to be like. They need to know that there is room at the top for women. Someone at the top who looks like them, talks like them and can relate to them. They need to see that the world of work is diverse and representative of all protected characteristics. There is still a lack of representation of women at senior level positions, and this includes Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people, in particular women, LGBTQIA+ people and disabled people. We need to look at how we hire, where we hire and who we put into those senior leadership positions. We also need to look at who we feel comfortable in hiring and why? We need to understand our internal biases first and then we can work on being truly inclusive.

2. What progress have you seen on gender equality in your life and work?
There has been substantial progress on gender equality during my lifetime. However, it still is not enough, and, in some areas, progression is still very slow. Women are still behind in pay in many sectors. Women still represent a small percentage (8.1%) of CEOs in the Fortune 500 list and in leadership positions in most sectors. On top of this, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic women, Trans women and Disabled women account for an even smaller percentage in leadership positions. Only two Black women were listed in the Fortune 500 which is a great achievement but more needs to be done. There needs to be a huge shift in how employers think and how they behave when it comes to advertising, hiring, promoting, giving responsibility to, giving best projects to, who they trust the most and why, and paying employees fairly, regardless of their backgrounds.

3. If you could go back to the start of your career, what advice would you give your younger self?
At the beginning of my career, I sometimes felt lost and confused. I wasn’t quite sure if I was on the right track or if I made the right career choice (legal profession). There is sometimes a feeling of uncertainty when one is young. Today, I would tell my younger self to be more confident and believe in yourself. No matter what barriers you face, you will overcome them by working hard, being strong and sticking to your dreams and ambitions. Always grab the opportunity to learn from others and do not ever be afraid to ask questions.

Lucie Caswell, Chief Policy, Rights and Public Affairs Officer – MPA Staff Member
Lucie is an experienced music business executive and senior rights negotiator. She has worked across the industry, from independent music publishers to digital licensing.

1. The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is #BreaktheBias, what are some of the biases women face in music and what do you feel needs to be done to change that?
Bias against women is so established it is ubiquitous. “I’m not sexist but…” can still be heard as a disclaimer for discrimination and you absolutely will at times, as a woman, be assumed to be clerical staff and expected to organise logistics. When I became CEO of the FAC, a Senior Executive enthusiastically congratulated me on getting the role of the CEO’s assistant. I am always polite, sometimes amused and generally exhausted by the consistency of this. I identify as a woman in a comfortably binary way. I am more guilty, however, of not calling it out. Bias which includes women is not limited to women and it is reductive even about what ‘woman’ means. As a straight, white woman, I have 2:1 winning ratio of privilege against bias but, we hear iterations of it directed at anyone who isn’t in the familiar clubs.

The way to change this is to call it out – and then to change those around you. To respect someone who isn’t us, we need to enjoy the difference, not be disarmed or intimidated by it. Respect is respect; build ways for peers and next generations to feel invested, invest properly (and equally) in them and, the returns are rich and plenty.

2. In your opinion, why is it important to celebrate International Women’s Day?
Honestly, I’m sad to have an International Women’s Day where we grab one glimpse of the incredible professionals, the creatives, warriors, innovators and influencers who happen not to be male. I’m also sad for the hilarious ‘what about us’ from straight, white, males. I am really delighted however, to remind all women that they are welcome, they are valuable, they are present and, that they are seen.

 3. If you could go back to the start of your career, what advice would you give yourself?
I would [however] tell myself to focus on what I can do and not on what I can’t. It’s that one point on the job description which chews us up and makes us apologise – and which others would breeze past with 100% conviction on a 90% test.

Try it. We are certainly made resilient; we get up if we fall over and we learn every time for the next time. I would also say, stick with it. Finally, like who hires you. Good people come around and those good people may be at the top and a working culture flows downwards, setting the tone and letting others rise. I’m glad to find that in the MPA and we are stronger for it. I continue to remind myself of these things and, I listen a bit more now than I might have done at the start of my young career.

Sarah Louise Dean, Legal Counsel

1. Who has been the biggest woman inspiration in your career, and why?
There are so many women who inspire me. Right now, I admire Nazanin Zagari-Radcliffe’s tenacity and Janelle Monae’s career (achieved despite many hurdles). I also look up to my friend Courtney Hodgkiss. She has a serious chronic disorder, has endured many operations and survived a coma. Yet, she never complains. She is this brave, funny and caring person who is a great performer and makes time to work with The Samaritans. With writing, I’m in awe of women who succeed in male-dominated fields. The journalist Joanna Robinson delivers fascinating comic-book critique. My ultimate inspiration is Geena Davis. An Oscar-winning actress, when the good roles dried up, she taught herself archery. Two years later she was good enough to try out for the American Olympic team. She did this while still working in film and raising three children. Later, she founded the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media. The Institute conducts necessary research and educates the media on how to improve female representation. Geena taught me that if you don’t like the game, then you can change it.

2. Do you feel that it’s important for young girls to have women role models to look up to?
Yes, so much! If girls don’t have women role models, they may believe that some opportunities are for boys only. Seeing women with power and influence affects expectations for girls’ own lives. Girls who feel seen gain the confidence to follow their dreams and make social change. It’s vital that girls have a variety of female role models across race, sexual orientation and age. These role models can help emphasise that these characteristics are strengths. It’s also important to ensure that boys have female role models. Society still advocates for girls to only look up to women and boys should only look up to men. By educating boys to see women as equally inspirational, we reduce unconscious bias.

3. What progress have you seen on gender equality in your life and work?
I have seen a huge amount of positive change. Luckily, I grew up in a time and place where society (mostly) saw me as equal to men. At school, I didn’t know what feminism was, but my year group were the first to wear trousers. This seems ridiculous now! At university I met lecturers who taught me about everyday sexism. Easier access to education helped me and friends extricate ourselves from stupid and incorrect gender norms. I have worked in journalism, film and law – all fields that I’ve watched become far less male-dominated. Thanks to cultural and legal change, women can now pursue careers and men share childcare. Today, so many artists, politicians and business leaders (of all genders) loudly embrace equality. Social media has its flaws, but it has helped correct some social stigmas against women. All women feel more empowered to talk about their experiences and stand up to sexism. But so many women do not have the freedoms I take for granted. We need much more progress, to ensure that all women have equality.

Natalie Graham, Partnerships & Events Manager – MPA Staff Member
After graduating with a degree in Music from Durham University, Natalie began her music career at Digital Distribution company Believe Digital. She then spent time working in membership for leading London clubs. 

1. In your opinion, why is it important to celebrate International Women’s Day?
I think it’s a really important time to recognise women’s achievements as well as putting a spotlight on important issues.

2. Do you feel that it’s important for young girls to have women role models to look up to?
One hundred percent, I think it’s crucial young girls have positive role models showcasing a template for success.

3. What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
Personally, I think it’s an important time to elevate women, to level the playing field.

Arabella Hoy, Marketing & Communications Manager – MPA Staff Member
Bella has a background in advertising, magazine and print publishing with an MA in Publishing and Creative Writing.

 1. What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
To me, it is a time to shine a light on women’s achievements and challenge gender stereotypes, discrimination and bias. It’s also an opportunity to celebrate the relationships we have with women in our lives and reflect on what they mean to us.

2. Do you feel that it’s important for young girls to have women role models to look up to?
It is vital for people of all genders to have women role models throughout their life and work. I have been lucky enough to be guided and mentored by strong women in my past jobs and at the MPA, and hope to in turn offer that to the next generation.

 3. What progress have you seen on gender equality in your life and work?
It has been heartening to see the confidence develop in the women I know in both my personal and professional life. Women are owning professional spaces in all sectors like never before and we can only move forward.

Hayley Jones, HR Consultant
Hayley has over 10 years of experience in HR in companies in the technology and leisure and hospitality sectors. 

1. In your opinion, why is it important to celebrate International Women’s Day?
It’s important to celebrate International Women’s Day as it draws attention to an important, and very real, issue that we face as a society today. Whilst progress has been made in gender equality and women make up a significant proportion of the workforce, we are still not ‘there’ yet and there is still not widespread enough understanding of the challenges that women in the workplace face every day – from equal pay, bias and harassment to the effects that biological impacts such as the menopause can have.

2. Is it important for young girls to have women role models to look up to?
It is hugely important for young people to have female role models to look up to, I think particularly in industries where women have been historically under-represented such as STEM, young people need to know about all of the options open to them as they progress through life, and not be discouraged from following their passions because of gender stereotypes which have been attached to different careers.

3. What progress have you seen around gender equality in your life and work?
Since I started my working life there has definitely been progress in this area, there is certainly a lot more awareness of the various issues and people are more willing to call out inappropriate or biased behaviour than they used to be. The introduction of gender pay gap reporting has also helped businesses to take an objective look at where they sit on this and to ask sometimes uncomfortable questions of their own approaches. But there is still some way to go, which is why IWD is so important.

Laura May, Director, May Music Ltd. – MPA Board Member
Laura founded the independent music publishing company May Music in 2017 after many years working in different roles around the industry. She still consults for a variety of independent labels, publishers and producers on their royalties.

1. The theme for this year’s International Women’s Day is #BreaktheBias, what are some of the biases women face in music and what needs to be done to change that?
I’ll be honest, because I work alone at home and not in an office, I think I don’t see or feel a lot of what goes on but just looking at the figures it’s clear that there needs to be a change.  I’m not sure there is one thing that I could identify but I think it is key for everyone to understand what they are worth and what their value is.

 2. Is it important for young girls to have women role models to look up to?
Role models are important as it’s difficult to become what you can’t see.  After I did my first panel for the MPA I was approached by someone who told me they didn’t realise that you could start your own publishing company and that they really wanted to do that too.  Just by seeing other people realise their own dreams can inspire others to follow theirs.

 3. If you could go back to the start of your career, what advice would you give yourself?
It’s easy to say now I’m older but I’d advise to always be clear about what you bring to the table and don’t be afraid to put your opinion forward. Just because something has been done one way for a number of years doesn’t mean that way was the right way.

Catherine Manners, Owner and Director, Manners McDade – MPA Board Member
Catherine established Manners McDade Music Publishing in 2006, which quickly gained a reputation as the primary independent publisher for composers of new classical music.

1. Who has been the biggest woman inspiration in your career, and why?
Isobel Griffiths, who is the founder and owner of Isobel Griffiths Limited, a company contracting orchestral musicians who record music, film/TV scores and video games. When I first started working with film & television composers 20 years ago, Isobel clearly knew everyone and everything!  She was and still is incredibly generous with her time and knowledge and is one of the most honest and likeable people in the business. She has worked with everyone from George Martin to Hans Zimmer.

2. What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
It’s a reminder that women in the music business are a joy to work with.

3. If you could go back to the start of your career, what advice would you give yourself?
Big yourself up because that’s what everyone else does.

Anne Miller, Director of Film & TV, Accorder Music/peermusic – MPA Board Member
Anne is one of the founders of Accorder Music Publishing and Accorder Tracks.
She is actively involved in shaping television and film music policy, sitting on various industry committees.

 1. Did you have a woman mentor at the start of your career?
I didn’t, but I started a very long time ago, and to be honest, there were not many women in the music industry. However, I did have an incredible woman boss who was both inspirational and supportive of me and understood some of the challenges I was facing as I moved deeper into the industry. At times, all these years later, I can still hear her voice in my head, and I still have times when I ask myself ‘what would she do here?’
The way a strong woman boss treated me has shaped the support and mentoring I have given to women in the industry over the years. I never felt I was in a man’s world, and I always thought I belonged, but as women, we had to be good at what we did and, dare I say, work very hard to be noticed and have a voice.

2. If you could go back to the start of your career, what advice would you give yourself?
I’d say to myself, be braver and nothing terrible will happen if I say the wrong thing. Another excellent boss I had used to say to he will always give me enough rope to stretch out my ideas, and he will pull me back in if needed, but I don’t let the rope out enough. It took some years to have the confidence to stretch that rope out to the end!

3. What progress have you seen around gender equality in your life and work?
Change is slow but positive. I’ve always believed in education, and we need to start at the grassroots and encourage and support women in the industry to find their place. It doesn’t always have to be reaching for the top jobs but encouraging women to get to a place they want to be on a level playing field. It’s not our right as females to be offered the top roles, but it is our right to have the chances to learn, be given equal opportunities and be treated fairly, and of course, to go for it if we want to!

Nicky Ojomo, Data Admin Assistant –  MPA Staff Member
Nicky has spent the last two years interning with trade body PRS for Music as Marketing Assistant and working as a Project Assistant at music charity, Small Green Shoots.

1. Do you feel that it’s important for young girls to have women role models to look up to?
Seeing is believing. It’s hard to believe that it’s possible to achieve something if nobody that looks like you has. Representation is important for everyone but depending on the industry, young girls are often limited when it comes to women role models. Knowing someone has likely faced the same gender barriers you may have and still succeeded, makes those hurdles seem easier to overcome.

2. What progress have you seen on gender equality in your life and work?
I think there is much more to do but, I’m happy to see the progress in conversations around gender equality. I think the conversation has become more open, with people acknowledging that to achieve gender equality, the requirements are different to each woman.

3. What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
For me, International Women’s Day is a time to celebrate the women in my life and honour the women that actively fight for equality. I think it’s important to celebrate those that paved the way.

Kathryn Knight, President, Edition Peters USA & Director, Peters Edition London – MPA Board Member
Kathryn has had over 25 years’ experience in the music publishing industry, with a focus on education, business strategy and digital innovation. She divides her time between living and working in the UK and USA.

 1. Did you have a woman mentor at the start of your career?
This was such a thought-provoking question, as I realised that no, I didn’t really! I had great support from senior colleagues in the early years of my career, but senior management was incredibly male-dominated. I remember a turning point in my early 30s when I started working collaboratively and closely on some major projects with awesome, brilliant women I really admired and found the experiences utterly inspiring and motivating. Honestly, I’ve never looked back.

2. In your opinion, why is it important to celebrate International Women’s Day?
History has not been great at recognising the extraordinary contributions that women have made to the world across time, and to the powerful telling of their stories. While it is vital to celebrate the rich diversity of talent every day – across all genders, races and ethnicities – it is wonderful to have a moment when we step back, focus on and celebrate women’s achievements in particular. Their stories inspire us and drive us onwards and remind us of our global community and joint endeavour.

3. If you could go back to the start of your career, what advice would you give yourself?
Never underestimate the power of active listening: whether you agree or disagree with what you have heard, it will provide crucial stepping off points for what informs and drives you. Finally, never be afraid to speak out passionately for the causes you believe in!

Harriet Wybor, Head of Business Development (Music), Oxford University Press – MPA Board Member
Harriet leads global strategy to maximise revenue from print and digital sheet music sales, licensing and promotion of OUP’s choral, orchestral and instrumental education catalogues.

1. Did you have a woman mentor at the start of your career?
I didn’t have a woman mentor at the start of my career, but this has become more important to me throughout my career as I’ve developed a network of friends and contacts in the music industry and beyond. I haven’t had any structured mentoring, but I feel fortunate to know several people who I would think of as mentors on an informal level – both women and men. In my view, a mentor can be anyone you trust, who can be objective and is willing to share their knowledge and advice. As I’ve moved into more senior roles, I have also had some coaching which has been helpful in helping me to identify career goals and become more confident. I’d recommend it to anyone who is looking to develop on a professional or personal level.

2. Do you feel that it’s important for young girls to have women role models to look up to?
Of course, I think it’s incredibly important for children and young people of any gender to have women role models. When women have often been written out of history, it’s essential for children and young people to expand their ideas about what is possible and have the opportunity to see positive examples in real life, on-screen or in books. There are so many gendered assumptions that society continues to uphold around what women and girls can do or how they should behave, and I think it’s important to challenge those assumptions and biases.

 3. What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
As the profile of IWD has continued to grow in recent years, it can sometimes feel like it is harder to connect with on an individual level. We know it’s an opportunity to celebrate women’s achievements and to work towards gender equality, but what does that really mean on a personal level? What can I do differently on this day from any other? I like to try to learn something new about a woman in history or a woman I don’t know but whose work inspires me, and I also like to take time to offer support or encouragement to a woman I know as a colleague or a friend. IWD is often thought of as a day of celebration but it’s important to remember how much work is still to do in achieving gender equality, especially in parts of the world where women do not have civil rights and consider supporting organisations that work to protect and empower women globally.