International Women's Day

This International Women's Day we're shining a well-deserved spotlight on the women who keep the noise going (quite literally) at fabric.

International Women’s Day is an opportunity for us to both reflect on where we fall short, how we can improve, and to celebrate the incredible women who are quite literally the fabric of fabric. It’s a chance to keep the conversation going, level the playing field, and bring it back to what it all means – equality.

Our All Queens event this weekend (12th March) is part of this, as an all-female staff and line-up will take over the club. But this is not just "one day". By filling the club with women working in every role Saturday night – from security, to bar staff, to lighting and sound – we want to shine a light, not just on the women that make fabric and the scene work, but on all the jobs available to women in the industry.

Meet the women in programming, operations, project management, marketing, sound, lighting, logistics, brand events and more at fabric, as we answer what women’s day means to us.
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Flaminia Agrimi - Marketing Director 

What does IWD mean to you? ‍

An occasion to remember not giving the freedom and rights we have today for granted. A feeling of gratitude for the women who came before us and fought for the privileges we have today. 

Do you have any advice to younger women who want to work in music or who are just getting started?‍

Don’t be afraid of putting yourself out there, to show what you are capable of and to be bold. Own your actions. Your voice can have a great impact on others around you.
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Judy Griffith - Promoter & Programming Director‍

What does IWD mean to you?‍

IWD is an important day for us to shine a light on womens work and achievements, it’s a day to reflect on the progress we have made, demand change and to inspire future progress. Exactly what MAH and I are trying to do through the All Queens event – to celebrate and elevate women.‍

One word to sum it up?‍

Visibility.‍

What would you like to see change in the industry?‍

I would like gender equality normalised – for it no longer to be a thing – for people to take the time to think harder rather than taking the easy route - reverting back to the safe zone of all men. For people not to just think about these issues on one day but everyday until it becomes the norm. We need and should have an industry that is gender equal, diverse and inclusive, An industry that is free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination. An industry where differences are valued and celebrated. It's time to level the playing field, equalise line ups and ensure behind the scenes in every workplace women are being represented and more importantly, heard at all levels.
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Izzy Trott - Marketing & Social Media Executive‍

A woman working in music or a female artist you look up to and why?‍

Some of the incredible women I work alongside – it takes a lot of grit and graft in this industry, music and the arts generally, and I have huge respect for the women I work alongside. Also I can’t pass by IWD at fabric without mentioning Delia Derbyshire – one of the first pioneers of the electronic music form. An unsung legend. Check her out.

‍Advice for women who want to work in music or who are just getting started?

‍Build those networks – it always helps to reach out to new people, you never know what opportunities might arise or how you might end up working together in the future. Don’t be afraid to say no if an opportunity is not right for you either – trust you’ll get to where you need to be. Make space for yourself. Ignore any imposter syndrome. Don’t overthink it.

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Harriet Bliss - Logistics Manager‍

A woman working in music or a female artist you look up to and why?‍

Someone I am always blown away by is Mantra, from the help she provides to creating equality within dance music, to her DJ sets and running the Rupture brand. She's just an all round boss! ‍

What would you like to see change in the industry? ‍

I think we've made a lot of progress within certain scenes in dance music for artists (although we still have a long way to go), but I think what would really help push things forward is seeing women in all areas. More female promoters, lighting techs, sound engineers, radio producers, label owners, the list goes on. More of us behind the scenes as well as in the forefront of dance music.

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Sofie Olesen - Brand Events Director

‍What does IWD mean to you? ‍

Equality.‍

What would you like to see change in the industry? ‍

Less focus on unattainable beauty standards for female artists. We really don't care what the artists look like, we care about what they produce, and how they make us feel.

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Kate Malcolm - Project Manager (fabric Records)

What would you like to see change in the industry?‍

Looking forward to the day when women and those previously excluded from the industry make up a fair quota of those represented.‍

Advice for women who want to work in music or who are just getting started?

Keep ears and eyes open, and be confident in who you are and what you know – it’s probably more than enough already.

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Paddyann Whaymand - Operations Assistant / Welfare Supervisor‍

A woman working in music you look up to and why?

‍Alice Farve, she owned Junction 2 festival for a long time, her words at Takenote Conference about watching your event manifest but never truly experiencing it really resonated with me and confirmed that the scene was truly where I was meant to be. Nothing gives me more joy than watching others have memorable moments at these events like I have.‍

What would you like to see change in the industry? ‍

I'd like to see more female artists in certain genres I love like dnb, jungle and dubstep. I am overly looking forward to seeing how production for club events progresses.

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Nina Shafai and Lenka Toma - Sound Engineers
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What does IWD mean to you? ‍

For decades women haven’t been given the same opportunities or platforms that men have, in relation to music we have seen that through all male line-ups or working behind the scenes, so it’s great to see fabric who are such an important institution within the electronic music scene giving women this opportunity and showing their support. - Nina

It's good that it's celebrated, it's a shame that it's celebrated once a year, I think it should be a celebration of our life and it should be a collaboration between men and women. Unfortunately we need to push through with events like this [All Queens] to show that we have equality – all we need to do is go hand in hand into everything. - Lenka
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Advice for women who want to work in music or who are just getting started? ‍

If there is something that you want to achieve, go for it and don’t let societal views or values hold you back. It is up to us to pave the way for the future generations and we can only do that if we are making a conscious effort to keep on breaking down those barriers. - Nina

Does sound engineering feel like a male dominated space?‍

It's mainly male. But women have a good ear for sound – you can hear it in DJ sets, you can hear that women hear music differently. I think men would agree on that! I think a collaboration between men and women, that's a perfect combination. To combine both, on the technical side or on the building or setting up side. I think the fact that women are coming up into the scene in the background as DJs and performers is a really good thing. - Lenka
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