Women in the Studio mentees to work with multi-platinum, Grammy-nominated producer Linda Perry, advancing gender equality in the music sector

TORONTO, May 10, 2019 /CNW/ - The Canadian Music Publishers Association is proud to announce the first cohort of its innovative and one-of-a-kind mentorship program Women in the Studio will be working with world-renowned producer/songwriter Linda Perry during Canadian Music Week.

Mentees Alexandra Petkovski AKA FJØRA (Toronto, ON), Denise De'ion (Toronto, ON), Francesca Nocera AKA Sun Sun (Toronto, ON), Lisa Patterson (Toronto, ON), and Myya Lal (Mississauga, ON) will spend one-on-one time at a Toronto recording studio today in a master class with Perry, a Golden Globe, Critic's Choice and Grammy-nominated producer and songwriter Hall of Fame inductee known for her work in the band 4 Non-Blondes, and for shaping the sounds of musicians such as P!nk, Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys, Britney Spears, and Adele.

The program provides mentees with career and technical skills development as well as networking opportunities that they would otherwise be unable to access.

A February 2019 report by the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative found that women made up only 21.7 per cent of artists, 12.3 per cent of songwriters, and 2.1 per cent of producers throughout the top 100 songs of every year from 2012 to 2018. That same report found that women producers were outnumbered 47 to one by male producers in the sample of recordings analyzed.

"Women are not represented equally in the music publishing and production business. We're proud to have launched this inaugural program to give women more opportunities in the industry at an important time," said Canadian Music Publishers Association executive director Margaret McGuffin.

"I've been on a mission to help inspire young women to step in front of the board and take action, for songwriters to express from their hearts and for artists to lead with passion," said Perry. "It is my pleasure to support experienced and emerging producers this week through CMPA's Women in the Studio initiative. It is such an important program to move gender equality forward in the music industry."

The program, a series of curated events and experiences from March to December 2019, launched recently at the JUNO Awards.

Women in the Studio is made possible through support from Ontario Creates and RBC Royal Bank.

ABOUT THE CANADIAN MUSIC PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION
The Canadian Music Publishers Association represents music publishers by creating global business opportunities and promoting members' interests and those of songwriting partners through advocacy, communication and education.

http://musicpublisher.ca/

SOURCE Canadian Music Publishers Association

Valerie Boucher, [email protected], Phone: [phone]