
Five great new female acts from London
Ahead of the launch of her new showcase, Finding The Female Headliners, promoter Bonita McKinney picks five of her favourite female or female-led acts from the capital
The idea for my new night Finding The Female Headliners (FTFH) was born after seeing a news story that stripped festival line-up posters of their male acts. It highlighted the fact that festivals are dominated by male artists.
When I’m working with new bands, the most common question they ask is: ‘How do I get on a festival bill?’ FTFH provides a platform for acts that may not have a label or manager pushing to get them on the right bills. Hopefully it will give them exposure for the 2016 festival season.
There needs to be broader industry support for female artists who aren’t making big-hitter pop; some do break through, but it seems they have to be of a certain genre for big labels to support them. Ruth Barnes of Amazing Radio helped start this night, and I love her ‘You can’t be what you can’t see’ ethos: who’s currently inspiring the next generation of female musicians?