byjayr is a musician and interactive artist who makes music that ranges from cinematic, progressive house to evocative breaks and gritty industrial techno, with influences as diverse as Sevdaliza to grunge-era Nirvana.
The theme for IWD 2021 is #ChooseToChallenge. What does that mean to you in your personal or work life?
#ChooseToChallenge to me represents how we can challenge the stigma surrounding women within the creative industry. On a personal level to challenge myself not to feel ashamed for the way I express myself as a woman.
On International Women’s Day, what is the most important message you want to send out to young women thinking about their careers?
To keep going and to be true to yourself. You don’t have to be someone you’re not in order to make your work go viral, you just have to keep going. And remember to run like a woman, play like a woman, and be strong like a woman.
How important is it for women to lift each other up and what does that look like to you?
I think when it comes to women lifting each other up, it’s super important to make it a habit in our daily routine. Even something as small as complementing one another. We’re already dealing with so much as women within society on a daily basis especially within the creative industries. We always have to work harder and prove ourselves more, and it’s important to have women within and out of the industry be supportive of one another. All we’ve got is each other when all else fails and to not take that opportunity to lift one another up is well.. unfortunate. So it’s definitely a very important factor. We often find ourselves comparing to one another instead of doing that we should help each other reach our goals to all be at the top.
Can you name a woman who continues to inspire you, and how?
A woman who continues to inspire me is a musician named Sevdaliza. Her work isn’t the only reason she’s an inspiration, but because she’s started with nothing herself as a woman in the industry and built herself all the way to become who she is today while being a POC independent artist, that to me is enlightening. She stands up for what she wants, she calls out what she doesn’t like and she’s not ashamed to reveal what goes on at all. She’s empowering and inspirational in ways that motivates younger POC women to be able to do it all without thinking twice about “How will I get through this industry as a woman?” you just do it and don’t stop. If you fall, you get back up.
What are some tips or strategies, resources/groups you have used to overcome barriers that many women often face in their careers?
A few tips and strategies as a woman within my career as both a musician and a visual artist is to not stop, and to keep going no matter what happens. I’m a very ambitious and goal orientated individual and I was called names for being that person. As much as it sucked because I knew if the gender roles were reversed they wouldn’t be spoken to in that way, it motivated me to aim even higher with where I wanted to be and who I wanted to associate myself with. If you’re told no, try again. If you’re told to change yourself to “fit in” walk away. Walk away because you don’t have to morph into what men in the industry want you to be. There is always a community that’s going to be there to support you so much more and give you the energy that you truly need.
What do you think are the biggest issues facing women in music today? Do you have any suggestions for the industry to make progress in alleviating these issues?
I think it’s a little complex because multiple things have changed in the industry when it comes to women but also a lot of things haven’t. Majority of labels are still run by men and there’s still a lack of women in the industry. It gets old when people are shocked that I’m a music producer rather than just a singer. Why must it be so surprising that a woman can do things just as well as men, probably even better, in the industry? These are the questions I ask myself when I meet people. There’s also this stigma and pressure surrounding how “perfect” you need to look as a female artist in comparison to men within the industry. This must change immediately because it’s our creativity that is being showcased not our looks.
Photo Credit: Marlena Goldberg