Dua Lipa called out the music industry for a super important reason

Ever since she sprang onto the scene with 2017's hit single, New Rules, Dua Lipa has proved to be a mainstay of the British pop circuit. At the tender age of 22, the singer already has two UK number ones under her belt, and she's just wrapped her first international tour. However, Lipa has managed to keep a level head, despite seemingly shooting to fame overnight.

Certainly, the singer isn't shy about taking about how much work it took for her to achieve recognition in an industry which is not only notoriously difficult to break into, but male-dominated to boot. In a recent interview with NME, Lipa broke down just how problematic the entertainment industry can be, especially when it comes to young female artists. In particular, she issued a rallying cry for women to headline music festivals as often as their male counterparts do.

The gender imbalance present at music festivals is well known. In a case-study conducted by Pitchfork, wherein 19 American festivals were analysed, it was discovered that 70 per cent of artists and bands were male. Unsurprisingly, the situation across the pond is not much better, and breakout star, Dua Lipa, has been the most recent person to condemn the sexism at play within the industry.

While Lipa is aware that festivals such as Leeds and Reading have a history of having male and rock-heavy lineups, as an artist whose self-titled debut has sold thousands of copies, and garnered millions of listens on streaming platforms, it's evident that there is a demand for a more diverse array of genres. "I totally know the legacy that Reading & Leeds have had and that in the past, it’s been more of a rock festival, but when you come to do a show, there’s so much energy to it and there’s so much diversity to the sound, it’s not just a pop show," she told NME. "There is room for pop artists to come and bring their best show to festivals which aren’t necessarily directed in that genre."

She continued: "A lot of [it] is down to the festival directors and the people they book. I think people need to start opening their eyes and ears and realising that there’s so much female talent out there. Obviously festivals need established talent but it’s really important to bring new music into big festivals and to give them an opportunity."

Lipa isn't the only artist to call out the music industry for its dearth of inclusivity. Back in January, Lily Allen took to Twitter to post an amended poster for Wireless festival, which had all the male acts scratched out to reveal the lack of female performers in its line-up.

"The struggle is real," the Smile singer captioned the tweet.

Considering the great success that young, female artists have had in the charts of late, festival directors have no excuse not to include them in their lineups. For the first time, the demand is there, as is the supply.