Nigerian singer Chidozie Godsfavour Ugochinyere, popularly known as Fave, has spoken about the challenges female artistes face in the music industry, saying their success is often judged by their appearance rather than their talent.
Fave made the remark during a recent episode of the Afropolitan podcast, where she compared the expectations placed on female artistes with those placed on their male counterparts.
According to the singer, women in the industry are often expected to meet certain physical and fashion standards before their music receives attention.
“It is harder for female artistes to ‘blow.’ Female artistes aren’t measured by talent but by what they wear. If your tummy isn’t flat, people sexualise you,” she said.
Fave said the situation has shifted attention away from the music itself, arguing that some female artistes are subjected to scrutiny based on how they look and dress.
“It is never really about the music; it is more about people’s sexual desires or their fantasies about you,” she said.
Fave described the expectation as problematic, noting that female artistes can be judged on how decently they dress before listeners consider the quality of their music.
“And I think that right there is a problem, because it becomes more about how decently you are dressed before people listen to you,” Fave said.
The singer also pointed to what she described as a different standard for male artistes, saying they are not subjected to the same level of scrutiny over their appearance.
“But when it comes to men, they aren’t held to that same standard,” she added.
Despite the challenges, Fave maintained that female artistes continue to make significant contributions to the Nigerian music industry, performing strongly despite the additional expectations placed on them.
