Electronic music was born from the ideals of diversity, community, and inclusivity; yet in 2019 only 7% of Billboard's Top 100 DJs were women. They make up less than 3% of production and technical roles in the music industry. For women of colour, it's less than 0.3%.
Filmed over the summer festival season, Underplayed (
underplayedthefilm.com) presents a portrait of the current status of the gender, ethnic, and sexual equality issues through the lens of the female pioneers, next-generation artists, and industry leaders who are championing the change, and inspiring a more diverse pool of role models for future generations.
An official selection of both the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival, Underplayed features NERVO, Rezz, TOKiMONSTA, Alison Wonderland, and Tygapaw.
Underplayed will have its global on demand release on Monday, March 8. In the U.S. and abroad, the film will be released on Amazon Prime Video. The film will also be released in Canada on the same day via Crave. Amazon Music's Twitch Channel will host a live release-day roundtable at 6 pm PST / 9 pm EST on women in electronic music featuring Underplayed director Stacey Lee, some of the biggest DJs in electronic music, all moderated by Twitch's premium content manager Valerie Lee.
The impetus for the documentary came to light during the 2018 Bud Light House Party Tour, when Bud Light Canada sat down with artists from diverse backgrounds and genres to learn about the evolution of their careers, and their unique experiences in recording, touring, and performing. Key conversations with female DJs exposed a striking gender inequality in the space, and further research substantiated their experiences.
Hammer to Nail film critic Christopher Reed called the film " a welcome wake-up call for better inclusion and diversity."
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