Beatport Invests $100,000 to Accelerate Gender Equality Across the Music Industry

Beatport proved their investment in gender equality while at the International Music Summit in Ibiza.

Early May of this year, Berlin, Germany hosted the International Music Summit Ibiza 2022, a preeminent gathering in the electronic community. For the keynote address, Robb McDaniels, otherwise known as the CEO of Beatport, pledged to invest six figures in a proposed idea regarding the advancement of gender equality.

As the international frontrunner for all things EDM, Beatport’s announcement to invest in the closing the gender gap was major. The announcement demonstrated Beatport’s perennial drive “to provide the next generation of creators, artists, DJs and producers with innovative tools to empower their creative process.” From McDaniels’ perspective, investing in revolutionary ideas that advance the industry, sponsor a more creative environment, and welcome marginalized artists is a strong bet. Unsurprisingly, McDaniels has has a history of vocalizing his concerns and opinions on progressive issues, even prior to this most recent announcement.

When extrapolating upon this substantial commitment, McDaniels shared poignant insights about the indusdry. “When I joined Beatport at the end of 2017, I was shocked to learn that about 95% of customers in the DJ community were male. That just didn’t make sense to me, and while it may be a deep-rooted sociological issue, it’s also a business one that, if solved, results in a meaningful expansion of our market and a big opportunity for our community.”

Daniels went on to elaborate, “While Beatport has put in place several operational and promotional programs to improve this metric by 60% over the past four years, we still aren’t where we need to be as a community that should have higher standards for inclusion and diversity. The reality is that we need to draw on innovation and collaboration from all corners of our industry to accelerate change.”

Post the big announcement, the Beatport team has experienced an overwhelmingly positive response, and even commentary from leading members of the industry that wish to expand the financial scope of the initiative, increasing the capital pool for this wonderful cause.