POPULAR MUSIC AND SOCIETY, 2017

VOL. 40, NO. 4, 474487

https://doi.org/10.1080/03007766.2016.1174419

“Who Run the Music? Girls!” Examining the Construction of

Female Digital Musicians’ Online Presence
Grace Y. Choi

ABSTRACT
Female digital musicians, who are self-taught, are making their
presence known online by using digital technologies, especially
social media. In order to understand how these musicians are making
their voices heard, one-on-one interviews were conducted with
an international sample of 17 female digital musicians who create
content on YouTube, SoundCloud, and Vine. The interviews indicated
that these musicians were self-motivated to acquire the necessary
skills to become efficient social media users and to construct their
online presence. Also, they were able to incorporate online comments,
negotiating their positions as women and musicians. Overall, female
digital musicians illustrate how the music audience has the ability and
power to create its own culture in today’s music industry.

Today, women are in a spotlight due to the rise of female mainstream musicians, such as Beyoncé,
who are singing about girls running the world. However, it is not just mainstream female musi-
cians who are representing and giving a new image to women in the music industry. Female
music audiences have transformed their statuses as consumers and become female digital musi-
cians, blurring the lines between fans, audiences, and musicians. Female digital musicians can be
defined as self-taught musicians who mostly perform their music online and are not affiliated
with record labels. They have a strong tie to digital technologies, especially social media, which
they use to engage in digital production. Digital production can be defined as “content creation
for the general public’s consumption, such as Web sites, blogs and video postings” (Schradie 151).
For these musicians, digital production is less about producing music using software, such as
Reaktor, more about using social media to create their online identity. By merging traditional
ways to make music (guitars, keyboards) with new ways to display performances, these musicians
are creating a strong musical online presence.
By actively participating in social media, female digital musicians have successfully
immersed themselves in participatory online culture. In this digital age, participatory
online culture enables people to create deeper engagements through media messages. A
participatory culture is defined as one with “relatively low barriers to artistic expression…
and strong support for creating and sharing creations with others” (Jenkins et al. 6). Due to
the rise of social media, participatory culture has enabled consumers to “archive, annotate,

CONTACT Grace Y. Choi grace.choi@mail.missouri.edu

© 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
 POPULAR MUSIC AND SOCIETY 475

appropriate, and recirculate media content in powerful new ways” (Jenkins et al. 8). Female
digital musicians have acquired appropriate skills and knowledge to create user-generated
content, which ranges from music videos to covers of popular songs. Although this content
can be looked upon as a hobby, it has given musicians an alternative platform on which to
express their voices and talents.
Their efforts are coming to fruition as they are gaining much attention from listeners
and mainstream music companies. For example, Cimorelli, a singing group comprised of
six sisters, started posting videos of their songs on YouTube in 2008 and were signed by
Universal Records in 2010. As of April 2015, their YouTube channel has more than three
million subscribers and the total viewing of their videos exceeds 700 million (“About,”
YouTube). Megan Nicole is another popular female musician, who started her YouTube
career in 2009 doing covers of famous songs; now, she is producing her own songs for three
million subscribers (Corriston). These examples are just a few of the many who are using
digital resources to form their presence online.
Despite the growth of female digital musicians, little is known about their lives. Most of
these musicians have taught themselves how to use social media to exhibit their talents, but
many audiences are not familiar with either the processes they go through or the motiva-
tions behind their work. This lack of interest might be because people are more interested
in products and the successful outcomes of these musicians, anxious to see who will be the
next Justin Bieber, who gained his stardom through YouTube. Moreover, people can assume
that their processes are simple because these videos often consist of a performer singing
in front of the camera. However, there is more than what appears on the screen, as many
of these musicians carefully plan their presentations. Therefore, to increase understanding
of their activities, this research conducted one-on-one interviews with 17 female digital
musicians who are actively performing on YouTube, Vine, and SoundCloud. Specifically,
the purpose of this study was to examine their relationship with social media and their
self-navigation of digital space to craft their online presence.

Problematic Representations of Female Musicians

In order to enhance our understanding of the significance of female digital musicians, it is
important to look at the difference in how female and male musicians are portrayed in the
music industry. Historically, men have been consistently highlighted as musicians since men
dominate the music profession (O’Neill 133). According to one study, of 276 rock performers
in the 1980s, 96% were males (Denisoff and Bridges 138). Another study confirmed this
outnumbering of women as researchers identified that in 166 music videos in the 1980s,
76% were of male soloists and 82.1% were of male group singers (Sherman and Dominick
87). Time did not help to narrow the gender gap among musicians. The US Census Bureau
reported that in 2005 to 2009 only 35.4% of musicians were women (“Artists”). Not only
have male musicians long outnumbered female musicians, but male musicians’ songs also
dominate the various charts. Lafrance, Worcester, and Burns analyzed the top 40 songs of
each year from 1997 to 2007 and found that 61.6% of the hit songs were by male musicians
(561). Looking at the current chart for the week of 27 February 2016, out of 100 songs, I
find only 21 songs by female musicians, including Taylor Swift and Adele (“The Hot 100”).
These numbers are alarming as they demonstrate that female musicians do not have a voice
in reaching a variety of audiences.
476 G. Y. CHOI

Even the female musicians in the charts pose a problem as many of them seem focused
more on their stereotypical representations than on their music. For example, in a content
analysis of 116 female artists’ music videos, Frisby and Aubrey found that female artists
exposed an average of 2.96 sexualized body parts that included cleavage and butt cracks,
36.1% of female artists danced in a sexual way, and 71.7% of these videos had at least an
indicator of sexual objectification (79–81). These sexualized images can be seen especially
in young pop stars, such as Miley Cyrus, who is known for her tight bodysuit and twerking
dance move. Some female musicians, such as Beyoncé, attempt to decrease these images by
representing themselves as strong feminists. However, Beyoncé’s “curviness” is often dis-
cussed in relation to body image (James; Durham), which takes attention back to a stress on
women’s physical appearance. This focus repeats the way they have been observed as sexual
objects in other roles, such as dancers and music video characters (Aufderheide; Seidman;
Gow). Examining female musicians should not be limited to these representations, but these
findings indicate that, regardless of their positions, they will always be looked at a certain
way. Hence, these objectifications reaffirm women’s stereotypical image as sexual objects
and distract others from knowing about these women as musicians.
However, there is gradual progress, with audiences beginning to shift their attention to
examining female musicians’ music and other aspects of their career. For instance, Taylor
Swift’s influence on her audience is analyzed by looking at her song lyrics (Chittenden;
Fitzgerald and Hayward) and their connection to feminism (Albrechtsen). Lady Gaga,
another prominent female mainstream musician, has been studied through her aesthetics
(Peters; Corona) and fandom interactions (Click, Lee, and Holladay). Even though these
connections can provide deeper symbolic representations of these musicians, they might be
based on branding considerations more than on altruistic motives. It should be questioned
whether these musicians are truly interested in empowering particular groups of people
or they are being susceptible to trends and music audiences’ demands. Female mainstream
musicians are often molded into specific brands so they can be marketed to the public
(Lieb 30). Depending on current trends in music and demands from music audience, these
musicians can alter their position to sell their products. Moreover, they are affiliated with
media conglomerates, and these can strategically craft these musicians’ images in a certain
way. In return, female musicians can lose authenticity in their representation and seclude
themselves as products, which can also contribute to discrediting their musicianship.
These previous studies indicate that, although female musicians are visible, they have not
been well represented in music. These representations are problematic not just because of what
they stand for, but also because they can have negative effects on female audiences. For example,
audiences who watched African-American female artists’ sexually explicit rap videos were more
likely to disregard African-American women’s positive traits (Gan, Zillmann, and Mitrook 395).
This result implies that female musicians may be representative female figures who can impact
how people evaluate women in general. Furthermore, in one study, school-aged girls ranked
female musicians as their top role models (Read 5). Because female musicians can be a source
of inspiration for girls, it is important to identify ways to frame them positively.
In order to create positive representations of female musicians, more research can be done
not just on mainstream female musicians, but also on female musicians who do not have
celebrity status. Some of these female musicians are already making a difference through
their performance. For example, Imani Johnson examined female break-dancers and argued
that they exhibit “badass femininity” that speaks to women’s marginalized experiences
 POPULAR MUSIC AND SOCIETY 477

in society (20). Similarly, Riot Grrrl produced songs about personal topics, such as rape,
incest, and eating disorders, which led to a movement to discuss women’s various negative
experiences (Schilt 7). Today, these female musicians have greater prominence because of
social media. For women who have access to these digital technologies, they can perform
their music digitally to a variety of global audiences with a click of a button. Doing so helps
put more emphasis on their music and on their musicianship. Therefore, these female
digital musicians need further study as they provide us with new dimensions to the female
musician and her use of digital technologies, such as social media.

The Significance of Social Media in Creating Musicians’ Online Presence

Female digital musicians have taken advantage of various social media platforms to showcase
their talents. The three platforms with especially strong connections to music are YouTube,
Vine, and SoundCloud. These platforms are not necessarily limited to music, but they are
attracting many musicians and music audiences. According to Google Trends, for the past
four years, music has been the most popular keyword searched on YouTube (“Explore”).
Vine stated that music has always been part of their culture, and they have provided a new
tool called Snap to Beat to make music editing easier (“Music on Vine”). SoundCloud is a
space dedicated to audio, and, while it contains other sounds such as podcasts, it is known
for showcasing and distributing music. Because of their strong ties to music, these three
can be considered as digital music platforms in order to examine how they are helping to
create female digital musicians’ presence online.
First, YouTube is a video-sharing site where more than one billion users watch hundreds of
millions of hours of videos and upload 300 hours of videos every minute (“Statistics”). YouTube
has a channel dedicated to music, and people can easily find music content, which is massively
popular on YouTube. Nine of the ten videos on the list of “most viewed videos” are music videos,
the first two being Psy’s “Gangnam Style” with over 2.2 billion views and Justin Bieber’s “Baby”
with over 1.1 billion views (Jang). Female mainstream musicians are also popular as four artists,
including Katy Perry and Jennifer Lopez, are featured on the same list.
Although mainstream media companies dominate the production of these most-watched
videos, ordinary people are also producing videos for YouTube. One content analysis study
revealed that user-generated content composes more than two-thirds of the “most responded to”
and “most discussed” categories, which signifies that many people are engaged in new forms of
experimenting with video (Burgess and Green 51–52). Because uploading a video on YouTube
is relatively simple, people can participate in video production without sophisticated software.
The ease of making videos has helped female musicians to showcase their talents online with-
out professional help. Furthermore, because YouTube has a global audience, and many record
labels also produce YouTube videos, these musicians use this platform to establish connections.
YouTube is not the only video site where female digital musicians can perform online.
These musicians can engage in even simpler video production through Vine. Twitter owns
Vine, and it is a video-sharing service where users capture and watch short videos no more
than six seconds long (Sippey). According to Twitter, 100 million people every month
watch Vine videos through its mobile app and website, and one billion loops of Vine vid-
eos are played every day (Lynley). The unique feature of Vine is its time restriction. This
brevity means that people can either simply capture a six-second performance or they can
strategically edit their videos using different techniques, such as stop motion, to garner
478 G. Y. CHOI

the attention of audiences. Also, because Vine videos continuously loop, which automat-
ically adds view counts, musicians can highlight the climax of a song or a performance to
maximize its appeal. For example, they can sing the song’s “hook” or perform complicated
dance moves in short bits, which can spark the interest of viewers to find out more about
them. Often, these musicians list on their Vine profiles other social media accounts where
they can extend their music connections with their audience.
Musicians have already had success on Vine. Us the Duo, a husband and wife folk-pop
band, became the first to get a record deal through Vine as they were signed by Republic
Records in 2014; in the same year, another Vine music performer, Shawn Mendes, whose
debut single placed in the top Billboard chart, was signed by Island Records (Lipshutz). While
these performers utilize multiple social media platforms to promote their music, they began
their careers on Vine and were mostly recognized through Vine. Female digital musicians
are also attracting followers from Vine as three of them are listed in the 30 most popular
Vine stars in the world with an average of approximately four million followers (Kosoff).
Hence, these musicians use various forms of video to make their online presence known.
Lastly, female digital musicians can go beyond videos and concentrate on audio using
SoundCloud, which claims to be the second biggest music-streaming service (behind
YouTube) with 250 million listeners a month and 12 hours of audio uploaded every min-
ute (Dredge). Using audio can be more advantageous than videos, which rely, of course, on
visuals. This means that especially for female digital musicians, their physical appearances
can be scrutinized. Stereotypes can come into play, and women can be harshly criticized for
their looks (Kistler and Lee; Aubrey, Hopper, and Mbure). However, because SoundCloud
focuses mainly on streaming audio, it can encourage listeners to focus on the music of the
musicians, which makes their musical talents the top attraction.
Female musicians have obtained successful results from using SoundCloud. For example,
when Ella Yelich-O’Connor, also known as Lorde, had difficulty getting radio airtime, she
put five songs on SoundCloud in 2012. The songs instantly went viral, which eventually led
to the sale of millions of copies of her debut album, Pure Heroine (Barber). In addition, there
are many SoundCloud groups dedicated to female digital musicians, such as Professional
Female Instrumentalists and WomensRadio Presents: Female Musicians on SoundCloud,
which can help to expose them to SoundCloud listeners. These groups often form online
communities to cultivate nurturing spaces for female musicians.
Overall, these three social media platforms exemplify the various options that female
digital musicians have to showcase their talents. Whether it is filming a music video or
recording an audio clip, they can actively participate in creating their online presence.
Furthermore, because each platform has unique features that can enhance their content,
these musicians can coordinate how they want to put their content online and solidify their
position as musicians.

Method
In order to learn about female digital musicians, I recruited participants for one-on-one
interviews. In-depth interviews can provide a richer understanding of these musicians.
Interviews can create a setting that, allows participants to explore their meanings and decide
what their most significant experiences with media are (Ruddock 135). Because there were
no scholarly studies conducted on female digital musicians, the framework of study on
 POPULAR MUSIC AND SOCIETY 479

Table 1. Background Information on Female Digital Musician Interviewees.

The most
Time spent frequent
Experience on produc- type of
in produc- ing music music
ing music online (hrs/ produced The most
Subject Race Age Location online week) online used site
Diana White 16 Turkey <one month 3 Cover YouTube
Emily White 14 US <one year 3 Cover YouTube
Katie Black 19 US +years 20 Cover YouTube
Mandy Multiracial 22 US +years 7 Cover YouTube
Susan White 24 UK <six months 4 Cover YouTube
Victoria Hispanic 25 Mexico +years 15 Cover YouTube
Dani White 16 US +years 5 Original YouTube
Jenny White 32 US +years 15 Original SoundCloud
Connie White 41 UK +years 2 Original SoundCloud
Elle White 24 US <one year 5 Original SoundCloud
Angie Multiracial 19 UK +years 1 Original SoundCloud
Sandy Multiracial 25 Greece +years 5 Original YouTube
Iris White 31 Germany <one year 3 Original SoundCloud
Stella Asian 25 US <one year 10 Cover YouTube
Britney Multiracial 21 US <six months 15 Original SoundCloud
Jamie Asian 21 Thailand <one month 2 Original YouTube
Lindsey Hispanic 29 US <one year 2 Original YouTube

these musicians is limited. Thus, semi-structured interview questions were used as research
questions to emphasize two key themes: motivations behind their work and social media
uses. This structure also allowed these musicians to talk openly about other aspects of their
musicianship.
Female digital musicians were found through key search terms, such as cover songs
of popular song titles (e.g. Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space”), in three social media platforms
(YouTube, Vine, and SoundCloud). Potential interviewees had to have at least one video or
song that featured them on these platforms. With Institutional Review Board approval, a
recruitment message was sent through a private message or, if it was listed, an email,,with
a pre-interview survey to obtain their approval and basic background information, such as
demographics and media use. To protect the identities of these female digital musicians, they
were given aliases to connect them to their information. Upon getting their information,
these musicians were contacted for either a phone or a Skype one-on-one interview. A list
of semi-structured questions, of course, was prepared to guide these interviews.
Between April and May 2015, out of 28 female digital musicians who completed the
survey, 17 of them agreed to participate in one-on-one interviews. The interviewees repre-
sented seven countries; their average age was 24; the average time they spent on producing
music for online consumption was seven hours per week, and their experience in music
production varied, ranging from less than one month to years (see Table 1). The interviews
took between 25 and 40 minutes, and they were recorded for transcription purposes. The
most prominent themes to emerge from the interviews were the musicians’ motivations,
their self-taught skills, and online comments.

The Motivations for Becoming Female Digital Musicians

Although having a presence online is essential to thrive in today’s technology-infused soci-
ety, it requires additional thought processes and efforts. These aspects can be seen in female
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digital musicians in this study who are knowledgeable about various social media platforms
and had more positive motives to start their music journey online. In order to shed light
on these musicians’ construction of their online presence, the conversation began with a
discussion of their motivations. It was clear that these musicians had specific reasons to
engage in this activity. Even those who initially joined these platforms for their enjoyment
gradually developed concrete reasons for their participation. The two overlapping motives
were self-expression and connecting with others. First, it was undeniable that these female
digital musicians had profound inclinations for music, but, because they had limited ways
to express their passions and reach their audience, they turned to the Internet to find their
space and express their talents. For example, Susan (24, British) explained:
[Music] has been passion for me since when I was 13. I was in a drama school, and I did
musicals and I really enjoyed it. I like singing a lot. Basically, I should show people because
it’s kind of me alone in my bedroom. Maybe people will think I’m okay or good at singing. It’s
also a place to share content to express myself.
For Susan, social media signified an opportunity to continue her offline passion online and
gain validation of her talent. Filming her videos in the comfort of her home encouraged her
to be herself and practice her performance through trial and error. As a result, she gained
more confidence, which inspired sharing of her content with others. These platforms are also
important for female digital musicians because, in reality, it is difficult to find an opportunity
to publicly exhibit their talent. They would need a stage and an audience, which can require
time and money. Katie (19, American) highlighted these issues as she said:
I started on YouTube when I was 15 and originally at the time the show, America’s Got Talent,
had started. They started doing YouTube auditions for the first time, and I really wanted to be
on the show. At that time, I was too young to go on American Idol, Voice. So I said okay, I will
make a YouTube [video] because we can’t afford to go to open call auditions.

Young women, such as Susan and Katie, might not have the necessary resources to show
their talent to others. Social media give them a virtual stage and a global audience at no
extra cost, and they can express their passion for music through different platforms. By
engaging in these self-expression activities, female digital musicians are also receiving var-
ious benefits. Emily (14, American) explained how singing online has helped her offline
singing experience:
As a kid I was really shy. I knew I had this passion and talent for singing, but I didn’t know
how to express it other than singing in the car, the shower, and with friends. I figured out what
YouTube was, and it really intrigued me. I had stage fright, so I knew I wouldn’t be going on
a stage anytime soon. I’m pretty sure I was around the age of 11 or 12 when that happened.
Since then, I have had a solo at a school choir concert, and I am so much more confident in
what I can do and who I am as a person.

For Emily, online performance was a way to find her audience. Despite her inability to see
her audience, she was consciously aware of her audience through view counts and online
comments. These indicators helped to identify YouTube as a stage for these female digital
musicians to build their music experience. The YouTube audience also represents an imagi-
nary audience, which has been found to help adolescents in understanding their feelings and
experiences (Elkind 1031). Even if there were no feedback, the social aspect of social media
helps to create a sense of others. This aspect signifies the importance of connecting with
others, as these musicians were eager to share their music. They were inclined to connect
 POPULAR MUSIC AND SOCIETY 481

with others, and because they understood that social media can fulfill this aspiration, they
began to engage in these platforms. Angie (19, British) explained:
I’d been writing music for a few years and doing a few performances. I wanted to record some
of it anyway just in case I forgot all my songs. I thought I’d put it out online mostly so my friends
could hear it, but I also wanted people to hear the songs I was writing. I was singing about
things I thought were important, and I also thought it could open up some collaborations.
Angie underlined the importance of social media connections in that they can help these musi-
cians to expand their network of people, suggesting social media is not just about creating
a communal music experience between people they already know. Social media are “linking
music producers to consumers through taste profiling, artist similarity, and recommendation
data as well as linking listeners with shared tastes and interests” (Knowles 4). These options have
Enabled female digital musicians to connect easily with like-minded people who can increase
the spreadability of their content. Also, many interviewees mentioned that, by collaborating
with other musicians who have the same passion for music but not necessarily the same style
of performance, they can merge their presence to experiment with their content.
In addition, female digital musicians can take advantage of these platforms by using their
music to connect with mainstream media companies. All of the interviewees had at least
one cover song, which suggests that they had a similar interest in getting recognized. While
they can perform these songs in the exact same manner as mainstream musicians, they can
also reinterpret these songs to exhibit their unique music style. Moreover, by adding their
interpretations to mainstream music, these musicians can portray themselves as a part of
a creative team for generating new ideas (Costello and Moore 137). They can differentiate
themselves from other musicians by demonstrating their skills to produce music and create
an online identity. These efforts can lead to positive outcomes, such as pursuing a career in
music, and they can motivate more female musicians to participate online.

Female Digital Musicians as Self-taught Social Media Users

One of the prominent traits of female digital musicians comes from their ability to utilize
social media. Unlike mainstream female musicians, who frequently use sexual appeal to
attract their audience, female digital musicians can appeal to others by demonstrating their
digital competency. In the discussion with these musicians about their social media uses, it
becomes clear that they possess the necessary knowledge to distinguish between different
platforms, which also enables them to engage effectively in music production. This is a
newly found empowerment because there has been a marked gender division in the pro-
duction of music. Technologies, such as samplers to digitally program sounds, were used
exclusively by producers, engineers, and composers (Rose 73). Furthermore, women were
discouraged from using these technologies because they represented voices resistant to
the dominant discourses that were shaped by men (Rose 147). This means that, for musi-
cians, technologies represent power and control over the definition of who gets to produce
what messages. Even though there has been a development of inexpensive home-recording
equipment, its marketing is still largely targeted at men, and women are reported to be less
comfortable using these technologies (Théberge 175). The gender gap between technology
users can be less conspicuous for female digital musicians. Due to the advancement and
wide availability of user-friendly technologies, such as social media, they have been able to
seek out resources that meet their skills. These skills convey media literacy skills, defined as
482 G. Y. CHOI

“the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media in a variety of forms” (“What is”).
By being media literate, they have acquired the necessary skills, identified what materials
they need, and, without help from others, created their music and online presence. Sandy
(25, Greek) explained her process:
I create music in simple software, which is Garage Band. I’m not using any professional or com-
plicated program. You start with [an] instrumental part, and I write the lyrics. I use SoundCloud,
not so much YouTube. So I upload my songs on SoundCloud and then I publish them on
Facebook, my artist page, and on my personal page. I didn’t take any classes; [I] was self-taught.

By evaluating her technological skills, Sandy decided that it was better for her to use a simpler
program. Also, because she obtained these skills on her own, she was able to control how
she wanted her music to sound without hiring a sound engineer. The emphasis on these
musicians’ digital production can be more focused on how they have recognized different
characteristics of each social media platform to decide where to construct their presence.
Jenny (32, American) elaborated on social media choices:
So for me, YouTube has been an avenue to receive tutorials and for information on different
programs. Even to discover different artists. If I want to hear somebody, I will always go to
YouTube to try to find videos of their new songs. SoundCloud is more for sharing all of my
music. I have Facebook, and every once in a while, I will put up maybe 1 out of 5 things that
I put up on SoundCloud. Just because Facebook is more about my friends and family, and I
don’t know if they care as much. It’s kind of catering to different groups. If I have something
personal going on, I would share it on Facebook. … I prefer to share my music on SoundCloud.
People, who are on SoundCloud, are specifically there to hear what I have to share as far as
music I upload. I actually had some people reach out to collaborate with me.

With the overflow of social media, which can target different audiences, it is not enough to
depend on one platform. As indicated in Table 1, these musicians mostly used YouTube and
SoundCloud as their digital music platforms; however, they also utilized other platforms not
discussed in this article. In addition to Jenny, Katie (19, American) also incorporated another
social media platform to promote herself. She advocated Instagram as an effective medium
for musicians because it is easier to create content and “unlike YouTube, people do not have
to stare at my mouth for a long time.” She also stated that she refers her Instagram followers
to her YouTube account, which demonstrates her ability to integrate these platforms to create
a consistent image and reach a wider audience. These musicians embrace another identity,
that of efficient social media user who emphasizes a new media literacy skill: multitasking.
Multitasking is defined as “the ability to scan the environment and shift focus onto salient
details” (Jenkins et al. 61). This skill underscores the capacity of these musicians to navigate
different platforms and become flexible in their social media use.
These musicians are continuously enhancing their social media skills. Although these
skills can be obtained through educational institutions, these musicians are self-motivated
to experience this digital space on their own in order to identify which platform can fulfill
their needs. As a result, they are engaged in expressing another new media literacy skill
called “play,” which is defined as “the capacity to experiment with the surrounding as a
form of problem solving” (Jenkins et al. 35). Beyond social media, learning about music
production in general can be difficult because there are various components in content
creation. However, because these musicians were driven by their passion to construct a
musical online presence, they were able to find resources and customize their learning
experiences to obtain the necessary skills to be media literate.
 POPULAR MUSIC AND SOCIETY 483

Contrary to a previous finding that women are less engaged in online activities and with
technologies (Haight, Quan-Haase, and Corbett 514), female digital musicians amplify
their connection with digital technologies through social media. They do not just simply
click a record button to display their performance online, but they carefully decide on what
software to use, on the sound of their music, and which platform to support their content.
By doing so, these musicians have gain a technical identity as effective social media users.

The Influence of Online Comments

Being an effective social media user also requires these musicians to interact with their
audience mainly through online comments. Because social media can foster a community
of people who come from different backgrounds, they form a public sphere where people
are susceptible to feedback from others. This can create a negative interaction as social
media, especially YouTube, are known for trolls who intentionally attack or disagree with
others. However, they also represent a place of authentic interaction between fans and
musicians where relationships can be developed (Click, Lee, and Holladay 374). Through
these interactions, the musicians can create a more harmonious presence online and help
shape their images, rather than have them shaped by media conglomerates. Also, because
comments can be both positive and negative, female digital musicians are encouraged to
negotiate these meanings themselves, which can affect how they approach their music and
regulate their online presence. Mandy (22, American) shared a most memorable comment
that promoted her growth as a musician:
I got a girl who reached out to me who was telling me about her friend who had a cancer. And
my music…gave her power. I remembered she said, “Well, she is terminal and she only has 3–4
months. She’s only 26 years old. It would be amazing if you would do her favorite song [“Fix
you” by Coldplay].” I usually don’t do things like that but she touched me. I dedicated the whole
video to her.…Her friends, who reach[ed] out to me, told me she passed away. And it upset me,
but it made me feel amazing that I helped her because she told me she was in a mess.…You
never know how much power you have until you are in front of the camera.

Mandy’s experience with her audience member demonstrated that female digital musicians
have a powerful online presence. Importantly, musicians use their performance on social
media platforms to empower one another. By creating or choosing music that has meaning-
ful lyrics, the digital musician can stimulate others to open up a communication channel to
discuss difficulties. However, it should be noted that not all of the interviewees were engaged
in this behavior as they were appropriating songs from current top hits in hopes of attracting
a larger audience. Additionally, because their ages range from 14 to 41, their music tastes
vary from Iggy Azalea to Radiohead. This difference insinuates that, depending on their
aspiration and priority, their personal taste in music can trump their altruistic desire to
help others. Despite this conflict of interest, some of these musicians, such as Mandy, tried
to incorporate feedback from others to form a supportive community, which suggests fur-
ther implications for the importance of their presence online. While most of their feedback
praised them and thereby intensified their musicianship, there were negative comments that
challenged their statuses as female musicians. From the discussion about these musicians’
interactions with others online, it was apparent that they had all experienced at least one
negative comment that attacked their appearance. Diana (16, Turkish) said, “Some people
484 G. Y. CHOI

say I’m fat.…But I’m singing, not attending Victoria Secret or something.” Similarly, Jenny
(32, American) also received negative comments about her appearance:
When I first was putting up my music, this was back in 2005, I created a website for I did a CD
under my real name. At that time, I wasn’t huge, but I was like size 10 or 12, and I put up some
pictures of me. The only comments that I got was shut the f*** up you fat b****. It sucked. You
don’t want to hear that type of stuff, especially when you are trying to share a piece of yourself.

Jenny’s experience with these comments altered her presence online. She now goes under her
musician name, and she mainly uses SoundCloud to post audio clips rather than photos or
videos. These types of comments reconfirm that, despite the intentions of these musicians, a
woman’s physical appearance is still a significant part of being a female musician—especially
when these musicians rely on social media platforms that focus on visual messages, such
as YouTube and Vine. But negative comments, in general, can provide an opportunity for
growth as the digital musician develops skills to learn from or manage these comments:
Because I’m not trying to make money off of it, even if I get one [negative comment], I’m very
happy. I mean there has been failure in a sense that I put a song and people said, I was de-toned
and whatever. But it’s not negative feedback because most of time, it’s true. So I then tried to
make it better. (Connie, 41, British)
There are always going to be bad people looking for any excuse to judge you so if the criticism
does not make you grow, throw it away and keep fighting! (Victoria, 25, Mexican)

Instead of ignoring these comments, most of these musicians used them to regenerate their
online presence. They took advantage of receiving instantaneous feedback and incorporated
these comments to form another layer to their musicianship. These efforts are visible as Stella’s
(25, American) videos on her YouTube channel progressed from cover songs to original songs,
which established her as a singer-songwriter. The musicians also valued these comments because
in offline performances it is harder to receive honest feedback since people tend to avoid confron-
tation in face-to-face settings. Since online comments can be anonymous, they might commu-
nicate more honestly about these performances. Because of the multitude of online comments,
the female digital musicians surveyed have developed skills to filter and analyze these comments,
which have helped to improve their online presence.

Conclusion
The expansion of social media has helped female digital musicians to enhance their presence
online and to develop various skills. The one-on-one interviews in this study demonstrate
that these musicians are highly motivated individuals who already had a deep connection
to music. Because of this passion for music, they found alternative spaces online to express
their talent and connect with others. In the process, they gained knowledge and skills, from
technological to media literacy, and became self-taught social media users to construct their
online presence. They also developed a consistent presence on multiple platforms, which
helped to attract various audiences, and, in return, they formed a reciprocal communication
with their audience through online comments. These musicians have gone through mul-
tilayered processes to expose themselves online, which indicate that social media provide
sanctioned places for women to be empowered and creative.
Future research should focus on observing these female digital musicians as they distin-
guish themselves from female mainstream musicians and represent alternative voices from
 POPULAR MUSIC AND SOCIETY 485

a marginalized group of woman. Also, as social media continue to support a wide variety
of digital productions, their activities will likely evolve into more complex significations.
However, because these musicians demonstrated their care about producing music and
sending messages through their presence online, their love for music will remain ignited
regardless of the advance of digital technologies. The last question of the interview con-
cerned advice to future female digital musicians, and the interviewees revealed another
motive for participating online, which was not to become the next Justin Bieber:
Remember that it’s about music and not about anything else. Music and sharing your talent
to the world, and making a difference are the most important parts. A lot of cases these days,
people just want to be famous. It’s not for me, and you have to make sure you are standing up
yourself. (Mandy, 22, American)
As female artists, we are making a powerful statement, and we must represent music in a positive
way. Go outside in a forest and sit down and sing to yourself and connect to all the memories
you can think of since when you were a child. [Think of] what songs you like. What people
you admire. Just create your own artist out of yourself. (Elle, 24, American)

This advice implies that, despite the difference in these musicians’ backgrounds, the sig-
nificance of their presence results from their love of music. For these musicians, creating
their presence online is a life process and gives birth to new identities. As they continue
to engage in this activity and strengthen their musicianship, they will emerge not just as
female musicians but also as musicians.

Disclosure Statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor
Grace Y. Choi (MA, DePaul) is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Communication at the
University of Missouri. Her primary research interests are digital literacy, digital production, and
social media. Her work is focused on making real-world impacts on education and culture.

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