Listen, I love music, and I love feminism. So I figured, why not combine the two in an article? The result is this awesome list of female artists that are empowering to all, especially women. Check out these wonderful ladies and add them to your playlists. Everybody needs empowerment, even when they least expect it.
1. Dua Lipa
Her main goal when creating music is to empower her listeners. This stems from her modeling career, when a manager told her to lose weight even though she was at a healthy weight already. Also, SHE WALKS ON WATER IN HER NEW RULES VIDEO.
2. Halsey
Halsey writes her music based on her experiences with bipolar disorder, being half-black and half-white, suffering from endometriosis, being bisexual and a feminist. She gives zero hoots about what her haters think and her songs are AMAZING.
3. Laura Jane Grace
This wonderful woman is the frontwoman of the punk rock band, “Against Me!” She publicly came out as trans in 2012, and since then she has worked with the Happy Hippie Foundation in order to raise money for homeless LGBTQ youth. Additionally, she is unapologetic in what she does, and that is pretty kick-ass.
4. Hayley Kiyoko
I cannot express how much I love Kiyoko. I lost my mind when she performed here at UF last year. She writes music about her sexuality and defies heteronormativity with her music.
5. Grimes
Grimes is a wonderfully eccentric artist. Her music is what she describes as “ADD music.” While she wears pig-tails and what some would think is “baby-ish” clothing, she has no shame in her appearance. She loves herself and her fans. FUN FACT: dhr released a line of vulva rings because thought the vulva is heckin beautiful.
6. Princess Nokia
This Afro-Puerto Rican queer artist heads many feminist collectives in spite of many cis white male spaces.
7. Alicia Keys
She’s a classic. No-makeup empowerment. Black girl empowerment. Need I say more?
8. P!nk
P!nk has been killing the female empowerment game for as long as I can remember. She fights against bullying, and promotes animal rights.. Her recent speech to her daughter about being yourself at the MTV VMAs this year was the cherry on top of an all-around feminist icon.
9. Beth Ditto
As the former frontwoman for Gossip, she is an outspoken lesbian punk woman that doesn’t shave her armpits and is very body-positive.
10. Mary Lambert
Another wonderful body-positive queer woman, known for her appearance on “Same Love. She is beautiful and amazing.
11. Cardi B
Have you seen her Twitter account? It’s great. Also, she’s not ashamed of her past as a stripper, which she shouldn’t be, and she is willing to defend a woman if they run into trouble.
12. Hayley Williams
I’ve loved Williams since my emo teenager days being that she is the frontwoman of Paramore, but the main reason why she’s on this list is because she realized her mistake of controversial lyrics in “Misery Business” and has become a big feminist because of it.
13. Melanie Martinez
For her debut album, she centered it around the character Cry Baby. Through this album, she implies that it’s perfectly okay to be emotional and that it’s not an insult.
14. Beyoncé
Would it be an empowering females list without Queen B? Her music strives to empower women and bring them up, saying that we are strong creatures that shouldn’t be challenged.
15. Alessia Cara
With songs like “Here” and “Scars to Your Beautiful”, she strives to promote self-acceptance of your quirks through her music.
16. Zara Larsson
She made an impression on my mind with this iconic photo. She has no shame in what she does, and if you look at her Instagram, you can see that she’s a big feminist.
17. Tove Lo
Her albums are literally called “Lady Wood” and “Disco Tits.” She’s known for flashing during performances, and being highly sex-positive.
18. Little Mix
This girl group helped revive girl groups after their formation in the X Factor UK. Their music shows that women don’t need men to be strong and that you will always have support in what you do.
19. Lizzo
This woman is fierce as hell and promotes self-love to all of her listeners, as well as body-positivity.
20. Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga is honestly a queen. Like many artists on this list, she has no shame. One song I want to point out is “Til It Happens to You”, which she wrote for The Hunting Ground, a documentary about college rape. She is an advocate for equality and helps fight for rape victims as well.
21. Ani DiFranco
Would it be a true list of empowering female artists without Ann DiFranco as well? She is an outspoken feminist icon and she expresses this through her songwriting.
Who are your favorite female artists? Let me know in the comments below!