TORONTO — A new report on Canada's radio airwaves says music performed by women is still vastly underrepresented on commercial music stations.
While there was a "bump in programming" for songs by women across all radio formats last year, the study said it's too soon to tell whether that's only a temporary improvement.Women were least represented on rock stations, particularly the harder-edged active rock format where they got just 1.9 per cent of airplay on average in 2023, or one song every four-to-five-hour programming block.
"Share the Air: A Study of Gender Representation on Canadian Radio " was conducted by musicologist Jada Watson through her SongData research program, in partnership with Ottawa's National Arts Centre and advocacy group Women in Music Canada.The researchers said they focused on radio stations for several reasons. Historically, they say, songs with greater support from radio also have a greater chance at broader commercial success, helping to launch mainstream careers.