Watch Lennon Stella & Other Female Artists Get Real About Claiming Their Power In The Music Industry

Remember the first time you heard a song that really spoke to you? On the radio, in the car, at Lolla or another festival like it; the lyrics broke through; the melody transported you; in 2019-speak, you felt SEEN. There’s a magic to memorizing whole songs when you begin to feel ownership over what you’re listening to and why. And it should come as no surprise that the more diverse the perspective that's informing the music, the better the output, and the more others experience a similar self-empowerment through song.

Cut to Chicago's historic Grant Park: That same rallying cry of self-empowerment of both artist and listener was a big theme at this year’s Lollapalooza music festival, where Refinery29 teamed up with Citi®️ to address gender inequality in the music industry. And, in keeping with the collaborative energy of the music industry itself, artists like Upsahl, Lennon Stella, and Brynn Elliott echoed the need for women to support one another.

“I think my definition of power is to lift other people up,” says Noelle Scaggs of Fitz and the Tantrums. “To bring diverse stories into the narrative, and to give new opportunities to people where they haven’t gotten them before.”

In a world where more women are front and center on stage, and running the show behind the scenes, it's important to keep pursuing gender equality, both within the music industry and elsewhere. Upsahl said it best: “Women are realizing that no one else can put a limit onto what we can do with our music.”

Watch the video above to hear from more artists and industry leaders at the Citi®️ | Refinery29 Studio at Lollapalooza 2019.