Singer and writer Lily Allen has always used her platform to speak up for women’s issues. This is why she was the ideal choice for being one of Stylist’s guest editors earlier this year. Allen raised an important discussion on self-censorship, examined the dark side of fame and championed social media activists. She also gave us her tried-and-tested sex toy recommendations.  

Now, following a social media hiatus since June, Allen has returned to Instagram to speak out about sexism in the music industry. The statement was posted on Friday (5 July) as a response to musician Kate Nash’s recent BBC documentary Kate Nash: Underestimate the Girl.

In case you haven’t seen Nash’s documentary yet, it follows the last decade of her career. Speaking to Stylist, she explained that making it was a big middle finger up to “the way media treated me and what they wrote about me, my label, managers and a lot of men I’ve worked with in the industry”. She added that “there’s a lot of vampires out there that will take from you and be dishonest”.

Allen has supported Nash with her Instagram statement and is urging people to watch the documentary, calling out “multi-millionaire white dudes” who are “controlling, belittling and humiliating the very people that they couldn’t do without”.

Allen also said that Taylor Swift exposed “a pretty brutal side of the industry” when she recently announced that her first six albums now belong to a man who she calls a “manipulative” bully. Swift wrote a Tumblr post explaining that music manager Scooter Braun recently acquired ownership of her music, saying he subjected her to “incessant, manipulative bullying”. 

Here’s what Allen wrote in full:

“So, this week we had @taylorswift expose a pretty brutal side of the music industry, some middle-aged multi-millionaire white dudes doing what they do best, controlling , belittling and humiliating the very people that they couldn’t do without. 

“Now, our very own @katenash has done something spectacular here, I think consumers have little to no idea how hard it is to survive in the industry today, please please please if youre lost for things to do this weekend, please watch this. It’s a real eye opener. 

“MUSICIANS WORLWIDE I BEG WE START A PROPER UNION THAT ACTUALLY WORKS, we need to change this system. POWER IS NEVER GIVEN, IT HAS TO BE TAKEN.”

Many more female musicians have shared their experiences of sexism in the industry recently, calling for the #MeToo movement started in Hollywood.

AlunaGeorge singer Aluna Francis revealed that she was sexually assaulted by an industry figure who “forced his hands” into her underwear. Little Mix also said that they were told to “flirt with men” while promoting their music in America. And just last year, Dua Lipa said women aren’t taken seriously in the industry because of “insidious sexism”.  

With so many experiences being vocalised, perhaps this is the music industry’s #MeToo finally in motion.

Images: Getty