Here at TRAKTIVIST, we’re starting a new series called Music By The Numbers, where we shine a light on tastemakers - festival talent buyers, Best-Of lists, and featured online content. While the music industry claims that being different helps you stand out, oftentimes tastemakers pass up on talent from minority communities.
Earlier this week, Rolling Stone released their Best Albums of 2017. It was a general melange of genres, as well as a good span from the unknown (Jay Som), to the up and coming (Open Mike Eagle), to the obvious choices (Jay-Z). They noted that “Music was full of fury, confusion and resistance in our first post-election year.”
Here’s who you can find in Rolling Stone’s 50 best albums.
Out of 123 musicians, 36 were people of color, 25 were women, 9 were women of color.
You can find 4 Asian Americans (Jay Som, Japanese Breakfast, Vijay Iyer, and LCD Soundsystem), 1 Latino artist (Residente), and zero out queer artists.
Out of 50 groups, 23 have at least one person of color, 22 have at least one woman, and 13 groups are made up of only white men.
29% people of color
20% women
7% women of color
3% asians
.8% latinxs
Check out our Spotify playlist with our selects from these albums!
