More than half of Black music professionals face discrimination in the industry

A report on the experiences of Black music artists and professionals details myriad racial and financial barriers they've faced in the Canadian industry and calls for mentorship and structural change.

The report by Advance: Canada's Black Music Business Collective and Toronto Metropolitan University's Diversity Institute says Black-dominated music genres drive the majority of music streams in Canada, but it appears few who work in the Canadian industry get financial support for their careers.

Among 1,702 Black artists and music professionals surveyed, nearly all — 98 per cent — said they had never applied for public or private grant funding. The wide range of grant bodies in Canada, from FACTOR to Canada Council for the Arts, are a key tool to help domestic artists reach audiences and compete globally. 

Among the few who had sought funding, 89 per cent said they weren't successful.

A spokesperson for Canada Council for the Arts said Thursday that the funding body is "committed to improving access to funding for historically underserved and marginalized communities" across the country, and that it works closely with leaders in those communities on outreach.

The Council said that in 2023-24, grants were awarded to 67 out of 247 music artists who self-identified as Black, representing a success rate of 27.1 per cent, which is higher than the overall success rate of 23.7 per cent.

Meg Symsyk, president and CEO of FACTOR, said the foundation recently completed a review of its artist-centred programs of the last five years and that 32 per cent of applicants identified as a person of colour, while 31 per cent of recipients identified as a person of colour.

After reviewing the Advance/Diversity Institute report, Symsyk notes "a little under 20 per cent of respondents" appear to be eligible to apply to FACTOR, which supports artist, company and community projects with an approximately $30-million-per-year budget. 

"We'd be keen to know if some were eligible but chose not to apply and why. This is why we engage with stakeholders such as Breaking Down Racial Barriers, Advance and our strong board and staff members from the Black community to have conversations focused on these areas and where we can improve," Symsyk said in an email. 

In the Advance report, released last month, professionals including A&R reps, songwriters and booking agents were asked about their experiences and perceptions of the industry as a Black person. The survey was distributed through Advance and the Diversity Institute's channels and electronic mailing lists from Aug. 29, 2022, to Oct. 5, 2022.

More than half also said they had faced discrimination in the industry based on their race or ethnicity. 

Advance executive director Keziah Myers, whose organization works to improve, promote and better retain Black employees and partners in the music industry, said the report's findings show Canada's music industry struggles with "unconscious and conscious bias."

"It starts from a position where what you look like determines how successful you are because of how you're marketed," said Myers.

Almost a fifth of survey respondents — 17.5 per cent — said they were self-employed or owned their own business, and half of them said they had not received financial assistance in the form of loans, government grants or outside investments. 

Myers said there is a lack of education about grant applications in Black communities and many applicants feel discouraged to apply for grants by what they perceive to be low success rates.

"If I hear within my circles and I see that there is somebody I look up to and I believe is absolutely in line for a grant, and they don't even get it, then I'm not going to bother," she said.

Nevertheless, the economic contribution of Black artists is considerable, said the report, released in late November. 

The report says music created, produced or influenced by Black people in genres including jazz, R&B and hip-hop accounted for 65 per cent of streams on Apple Music and Spotify from 2019 to 2022. 

Most respondents noted that they are often the only person of their race or skin colour in their workplace.

Respondents reported microaggressions from "white executives dismissing Black people's direct involvement with music and culture and gearing everything toward white people's interests" to "blatant moves made by senior white executives" to prevent Black professionals from getting promoted.

"I heard one the other day from one of our members who said, 'I just talked to someone in the industry and he told me that I needed to straighten my hair and look more white,'" Myers said.

In Canada, we see the Weeknd is successful, we see Deborah Cox is successful, we see Drake is successful. What the industry needs to realize is that there's more where that came from.- Keziah Myers

While more than half of respondents reported "feelings of discrimination or unfair treatment" in the industry, nearly two-thirds reported feeling like they "belong" in the music business. Myers said that reflects the deep passion and love participants have for their work.

"I have been humiliated but it does not affect my love of music and love of the world," one participant said.

The report proposed several measures to empower Black artists, including mentorship and training programs, and the collection of race-based data on Black music consumption and professional support.

Myers said she hoped the data will spur change at Canada's government agencies and funding bodies.

"In Canada, we see the Weeknd is successful, we see Deborah Cox is successful, we see Drake is successful," she said. 

"What the industry needs to realize is that there's more where that came from. It just requires us to invest resources into these communities and into these artists so that they have a chance."