Misogyny on rise in music – and female pop stars are driving it

Telegraph

18-03-2025

Female pop stars are using more misogynistic lyrics in chart-topping songs than they did two decades ago.
In the last 20 years, negative feminine nouns, such as 'b---h', 'p---y' and 'h-e,' have become more commonly used in the UK's top 100 chart listings as more female artists have topped the charts.
From 2004 to 2024, award-winning female artists including Beyoncé, Ariana Grande and Cardi B have used examples of the 'concerning' language in their music, a study of lyrics from hundreds of hit songs has found.
The study by Startle, an audiovisuals firm, found that the use of the word 'b---h' has almost doubled during the two decades.
In 2004, the word was featured in Britain's favourite songs 18 times, but this increased to 34 times in 2024. The rise has happened as more female artists than ever are topping the UK singles charts.
Women achieved a record-breaking 34 weeks at the top of the singles charts last year, with stars such as Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter, and Charlie XCX leading the charge.
Female artists also dominated the Grammy Awards in 2024 by winning every single major televised award category.
Adam Castleton, Startle's chief executive, suggested that 'many female artists feel pressured to conform to what the industry expects and what will sell records', adding that this still includes 'hyper-sexualisation' in their lyrics.
The popularity of the term 'h-e' in music appeared to peak in 2014, when it was featured 18 times in the UK's favourite songs.
'Labels, producers and execs who are still predominantly male have the final say and they will decide what's marketable or not – including whether feminist messaging makes the cut,' Castleton added.
Lyrics in British singer Charlie XCX 's song Von Dutch, part of her chart-topping album Brat, include 'Why you lyin'? You won't f--- unless he's famous' in what she has labelled as 'kind of a dis track' against an unknown peer.
The 32-year-old artist previously said: 'It's so complicated being an artist, especially a female artist, where you are pitted against your peers but also expected to be best friends with every single person constantly and if you're not, you're deemed a bad feminist.
'To me, that is such an unrealistic expectation.'
Last year, Grammy winners Beyoncé and Swift used the term 'b---h' in their songs, Texas Hold 'Em and I Can Do It with a Broken Heart.
Beyoncé's use of the term in her song, which states 'Don't be a b---h, come take it to the floor now,' could be a way for female artists to 'repurpose' the language, Castleton suggested.
He said: 'It's a clear demonstration that language is often repurposed over the course of history to undo (or challenge) the status quo.
'An insult can be used as a positive marker for group identity and solidarity, and one female artist finding success with their lyrics will spur on many others to follow suit.'
This could also be seen in Swift's use of the term in I Can Do It with a Broken Heart, which seemingly refers to herself struggling to perform when it states: 'Lights, camera, b---h smile, even when you wanna die.'
Castleton noted that women's 'portrayal in lyrics still has a way to go' and that the industry remains 'male-dominated'.
A 2019 report by Vick Bain, the former head of the British Academy of Songwriters Composers & Authors and a campaigner for gender equality in music, established at the time that less than 20 per cent of musicians signed to significant UK record labels are female, meaning the vast majority (more than 80 per cent) are male.
Following her report Counting The Music Industry: The Gender Gap, she said she was particularly struck by the 'gender of music', which reflects how people subconsciously identify music as masculine and feminine in terms of instruments, lyrics, style, tone, attitude and dress codes.
'There is a sliding scale; the more aggressive and darker music is, combined with the more technologically based, the fewer female musicians perform in those genres,' she said.
Castleton also suggested that the increase in derogatory language could be down to factors such as the increase in popularity of certain genres, such as rap, hip-hop and drill.
For example, Cardi B, the = rapper who holds the record of the most No1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, frequently uses terms like 'p---y' and 'b---h' in her music, most famously in Bodak Yellow and WAP, featuring Megan Thee Stallion.
'These genres are centred on the hyper-masculine principles of dominance, status and often still the objectification of women,' Castleton said.
He added: 'There's a big commercial opportunity and therefore an even bigger incentive for labels and artists to produce content that fits this lucrative formula.'