If you’ve been following the dramas over the lack of female artists on the line ups for Bluesfest and UNIFY this week you’d have probably concluded that getting female representation on a music festival is a nightmarish and impossible task far beyond the abilities of any promoter.
Well, it’s pretty amazing that the annual three-day Meredith Music Festival has just released its lineup for this December’s event in rural Victoria and somehow, magically, probably purely by accident, they’ve got an amazingly strong and diverse lineup including a whole lot of female artists.
B-b-but how? Is it sorcery?
Among the female artists are the Breeders, Yaeji, Rosa Terenzi, Sampa the Great, DJ Jnett, Laura Jean, Nadia Rose, Mim Sulieman and DJ Lady Erica. And that’s not even including the bands that have a mix of dudes and non-dudes, like Scott & Charlene’s Wedding, the Native Cats, the Seven Ups and Time For Dreams.
They’re joined by the Pharcyde, Billy Bragg, Pond, Panda Bear, Mambali, Lil Louis, the Presets and freakin’ Mental As Anything.
In other words: holy hell, what a weekend.
In fact, it’s a gleeful mix of talent which is not only gloriously diverse but also spans multiple genres and showcases local heroes, international stars, and puts heritage legends cheek-by-jowl with emerging artists.
In other words, it’s almost like booking a representative and varied yet still all-killer festival line up is entirely possible to do.
Maybe some other promoters might want to take note.