Tens of thousands of visitors are expected at “Rock am Ring”. But only a few women are announced on the stages. Comedian Carolin Kebekus is planning an all-female music festival.
After years of forced Corona break, the big rock festivals are back on stage. Now at the weekend it’s the twin spectacles “Rock am Ring” in the Eifel and “Rock im Park” in Nuremberg (June 3-5).
The organizers are expecting a total of more than 160,000 fans. Around 70 bands want to heat them up. Headliners are Green Day, Muse and Volbeat. But when long manes are shaken on each of the three stages, women’s heads are rarely found underneath.
All-female protest festival
Comedian Carolin Kebekus (42) wants to protest against the low proportion of women at numerous rock spectacles with an all-female festival on Whit Monday in Cologne – just one day after “Rock am Ring” and “Rock im Park”. Already at the start of this double open air on Friday, the band Kochkraft want to do KMA and the feminist music label Ladies
24 acts, mostly with women, covered songs by male bands from this year’s or earlier “Rock am Ring” programs. Your sampler called “Cock am Ring” should be available from this Friday on Spotify and other download and streaming platforms, such as KMA and Ladies’ Kochkraft
Criticism of festivals: “Hair-raising overweight of men”
In the announcement of the voluntary project, there is talk of a “hair-raising overweight of men” at many festivals. «Guys, dudes, guys as far as the eye can see! On average, the proportion of women who perform at “Rock am Ring” is solid in the single-digit percentage range.» Why? “Men book men,” it continues. It’s easier for them to sign bands they already know, and those are male groups.
There are by no means too few rock musicians of stature. Or be like Kochkraft through KMA and Ladies
Kebekus: Signal for more visibility of women on stages
At the end of April, Kebekus said in the podcast “Talk mit K” of the “Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger”: “I’ve been to “Rock am Ring” a lot and have experienced incredibly great bands. But when you see that the proportion of women on stage is approaching zero again this year, that just can’t be the case. That’s no longer possible in 2022.” She can no longer hear the argument that there are too few women’s bands. “They have to be encouraged, just like male musicians.” At their Cologne festival on Whit Monday only with female artists, Lea, the No Angels and Mine are on stage. According to the Kebekus spokesman, around 5,000 visitors are expected. Men are also invited. It is about a signal for more visibility of women on stages.
“Rock am Ring” organizer: Many women far away from the stage
The boss of the “Rock am Ring” organizer company Dreamhaus, Matt Schwarz, explains: “Carolin Kebekus addressed an important topic that we are also dealing with.” He refers to the producers and other women who made the festival possible in the first place: “We filled central areas and management positions at “Rock am Ring” with women, from event and festival management, ticketing, marketing and PR management to the complete festival production office, the accreditation team and various production managers of the individual stages.»
Schwarz emphasizes: “We will continue to prioritize this topic in the future and have already started to do so in the ongoing program planning for the coming year.” However, it is also clear “that a festival cannot implement diversity on its own”. This requires the structural action of all players, such as record companies, band management and the media.
Roth: Give female artists “necessary space in the program”.
Minister of State for Culture Roth, on the other hand, sees organizers as having a responsibility “to meet the changed expectations in our society by specifically promoting many exciting and successful artists and giving them the necessary space in the programme. In any case, it’s not up to the fans.” In order to change something, “every initiative that focuses on music by and with women is important”.
There will probably not be a lightning change here. Music sociologists and music pedagogues refer to very traditional structures. For example, little girls would be encouraged to learn the flute, violin or piano rather than drums, electric guitar or electric bass. Bands are mostly formed by boys. And the rock music industry is characterized by male producers.
