Kalamazoo singer-songwriter Grace Theisen — who’s also a member of the Americana super-group The Rebel Eves — says it’s vital and commendable that a music festival such as Kalamazoo’s Sounds of the Zoo has focused bookings and attention on female artists.
“It’s incredibly important,” she said of the weeklong, fifth-year festival that not only features a slew of talented women across multiple venues, but even hosts a special night “Celebrating Women in Music” on Tuesday, Sept. 22.
“The numbers show that women and nonbinary artists are still vastly underrepresented on festival stages — about 77.4 percent male, 21.7 percent female and 1 percent nonbinary at major U.S. festivals tracked by Book More Women,” Theisen noted.
“Festivals like Sounds of the Zoo are helping to shift those percentages and create real change. … Most audiences have no idea how stark these numbers still are, so it’s incredibly important that we keep raising awareness — and, more importantly, taking action to change it. I’m really grateful that Sounds of the Zoo and (organizer) Jennifer Hudson-Prenkert are helping to create that change here in Michigan.”…