The representation of Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) within the UK music industry is higher than the national average, according to a new report.
The report, released by UK Music, has revealed that BAME representation currently stands at 15.6 per cent, higher than the UK population as a whole, which is 12.8 per cent.
Of those who had been working within the music industry for under a year, 27.5 per cent are BAME.
Despite the positives, the research also found that the proportion of BAME representation decreases by age. Between the ages of 35 and 44, representation stands at 11.7 per cent and from 45 to 64, it falls to 7.6 per cent.
The number of women within the music industry currently stands a nearly equal divide, at 45.3 per cent. This is slightly lower than the national average, which stands at 50.7 per cent. However, the report found that between the ages of 25 and 34, women make up 54.5 per cent of the industry’s workforce.
Keith Harris OBE, chairman of UK Music’s Diversity Taskforce, said, “It seems that we have reached a moment where the need to improve the diversity of our industry is being matched by desire by all the interested parties to put initiatives in place that will make a significant difference.”
“I am optimistic that over the coming few years we will see a significant improvement.”
Jo Dipple, UK Music chief executive, said, “This survey gives us the first real insight into diversity across all businesses in the music industry.”
“The history of British music is one of merging multiple genres from numerous cultures into unique sounds.
“Diversity has allowed our industry to sustain a global reputation for the UK.”
“Nurturing and bolstering workforce diversity adds strength to this country’s astonishing musical output.”
“The two go hand in hand.”
