Simi, a well-known Nigerian singer also known as Simisola Kosoko, has raised awareness of the usually harsh dynamics among female performers in the music industry.
During a recent interview with Angela Yee, Simi discussed the negative consequence of fans always pitting female artists against one another, putting unneeded strain on their relationships.
Simi underlined that fan-fueled comparisons and rivalries can be extremely distracting and obstructive, especially given the industry’s existing low representation of female performers in compared to their male counterparts.
She noticed:
“Fans pit women against each other in the music industry. It’s so intense sometimes. Sometimes it can be really distracting because there are not as many of us in the [music] industry compared to the guys”.Simi emphasized that female artists can co-exist and thrive without being pitted against each other.
She stated that even though she has consistently advocated for women’s empowerment through her music and public statements, her message is still been often misunderstood.
Simi clarified:
“When a new female artist breaks into the industry, they [fans] just pit her against us with all forms of comparisons.“We can all thrive. I have spoken about women several times even in my songs. But because I’m an artist people assume that the only way my talking about women can be valid is by featuring women in my songs. It’s just so weird because there are women in different walks of life.“They do pit us against each other a lot and I think sometimes that puts some pressure on the kind of relationship that we would have otherwise.”
