10 things you can do to make dance music less sexist

It’s pretty astonishing that this is still going on, but sadly female producers are consistently belittled by people accusing them of not making their own music. Mixmag’s favourite artist of 2016, The Black Madonna, has also experienced this. “Someone I don’t even know IRL has been accusing me of not making my own music,” she tweeted last November (incidentally, she told me who the dickhead responsible was, and they were way less talented than her – funny what insecurity will do.)

“To be honest it makes me laugh when people doubt my ability,” says conceptual techno artist Demian Licht, who in addition to running her own label is the only woman to be an Ableton Certified trainer in South America. “At the beginning I got really angry. But with all the knowledge I’ve acquired in the field of production I have confidence now. I don’t need to explain anything, my work and my words break the misconception.”

We’re all consumers now, and social media makes us powerful. For example, I recently bought some merch from a Berlin techno label I love, then realised their entire artist line-up was white men. I emailed the label boss to complain and he responded with an apology and a promise to do more. It’s not enough, but it’s a start.