Wendy Shay shares her take on objectification of females in the industry
Ghanaian songstress Wendy Shay has taken a stand against the unfair treatment and objectification of women in the music industry.
In a recent interview on Berla Mundi’s Day Show on TV3, the self-proclaimed dancehall queen expressed her displeasure with the labeling of female musicians as ‘female artistes,’ while their male counterparts are simply referred to as ‘artistes.’
Wendy Shay passionately advocated for equal treatment, asserting that women in the music industry work just as hard as men, if not harder, and deserve to be recognized as artists without any gender distinctions.
“It is not fair. First of all, I don’t even like the fact that people go like ‘female artistes’ because you don’t see our male counterparts being labeled as ‘male artistes’. They are seen as artistes so we should be seen as such. We are artistes,” she suggested.
She highlighted the efforts and dedication of female musicians like herself and Sister Efya, emphasizing that they put in a lot of hard work and sweat, deserving of acknowledgment and credit.
“Putting that aside, I think it’s not fair because there are so many women who are really working hard; like me, Wendy Shay. We have artistes like Sister Efya working hard. It’s about time Ghanaians or this part of our world acknowledge the hard work, effort and sweat we put in,” she mentioned.
Addressing the challenges women face in gaining recognition and leadership roles, Wendy Shay acknowledged that there is still a cultural mentality in this part of the world that associates women primarily with household duties.
However, she expressed hope that with time and progress, society will evolve to embrace women in leadership positions and appreciate their contributions in various fields, including music.
