Neoliberal Working Conditions, SelfPromotion and DJ Trajectories: A Gendered Minefield

Abstract

Over the last forty years, scholars have explored the obstacles faced by female musicians wanting to be recognized as legitimate professionals in various musical "worlds" (Becker 1982) such as classical music, jazz, rock, pop, rap and electronic (dance) music (e.g.Buscatto 2007, Cohen 1997, Whitely 2000).While all these studies arrive at the conclusion that female musicians find it more difficult to develop a sustainable career, they also provide insights into the gendered and racialized practices ingrained in the specific musical world for accessing resources, gaining recognition and making a living from music-making.In this article, we present some of our findings on the careers of female DJs in electronic dance music scenes in consideration of the changing relationships between culture and society associated with neoliberal economics, which increasingly force cultural producers to adopt an entrepreneurial position (Gavanas 2009, Gavanas and Reitsamer 2013, Gavanas and Östrom 2016[1]; Reitsamer 2011a Reitsamer , 2011b Reitsamer , 2012Reitsamer , 2013)).In the first part of the article, we outline the working conditions in electronic dance music "scenes" (Peterson and Bennett 2004) and illustrate how patterns of gender inequality, exclusion and segregation are reflected in the narratives of female and male DJs.We then describe the relationship between technology and masculinity as one of the key gatekeeping practices in electronic (dance) music that results in negative effects for female DJs and music producers.In the third part of the article, we describe the "burden of representation" (Puwar 2004) faced by female DJs in the context of "postfeminism" (McRobbie 2009, Gill 2011).Finally, we discuss how female DJ networks develop diverse strategies for advancing the careers of their Anna Gavanas and Rosa Reitsamer, Neoliberal Working Conditions, Self-Promotion and DJ Trajectories: A Gendered Minefield 2 members and how the success of women is devalued by male DJs.Our findings are based on 75 interviews with DJs active in the (trans-)local electronic dance music scenes in Berlin, London, Vienna and Stockholm conducted between 2005 and 2011, complemented by recent interviews with DJs based in Stockholm and an analysis of discussions on an internet forum for female DJs between 2009 and 2011. Working conditions in electronic dance music scenesNumerous scholars have explored the working conditions of musicians in diverse musical scenes by highlighting the endemic features of creative labour: precarious employment, low and sometimes non-existent wages, dense social networking, the holding of multiple jobs to sustain livelihoods and music-making and the blurring of work and leisure that often leads to self-exploitation (e.g.Banks 2007, Hesmondhalgh and Baker 2011, Zwaan et al. 2009).These working conditions seem to be reflected in (trans-)local electronic dance music scenes in Western cities.As Reitsamer (2011a) illustrates in her study on the economically successful careers of DJs in Vienna, Austria, today's club DJs tend to promote the neoliberal economic ideal of an autonomous cultural entrepreneur by combining self-organisation and self-marketing with unregulated labour and a gendered construction of artistic identity.However, the neoliberal encouragement of up-and-coming DJs to become cultural entrepreneurs is a fairly recent development within (trans-)local electronic dance scenes, thus marking a break with the previous employment practices of DJs.In the 1970s and 1980s, many DJs sought out "residencies" at local clubs where they played music several times a week to entertain particular audiences, with some of them even being employed by the club owner or the management.In his study on the white gay club scene at the club "The Saint" operating from 1980 to 1988 in New York City, Tim Lawrence (2013) illustrates how neoliberal shifts in employment practices in the 1980s were embedded into a more general shift towards one-off, flexible contracts that has become the hallmark of market-driven neoliberalism and employment practices in the cultural industries.According to Lawrence, the club management of "The Saint" framed the dancers as individual consumers rather than participants in a collective practice and, by so doing, encouraged them to form an attachment to the venue rather than to individual DJs.As a result, the management introduced a revolving roster of DJs positioned as hired entertainers serving the "dancers-consumers".Ultimately, Lawrence observes, these changes led to a neoliberal framework in which DJs became freelancers who could expect to spin records once or twice a month as opposed to having regular DJ residencies.

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