Best Coast’s Bethany Cosentino Wrote A Powerful Essay On Misogyny In The Music Business For Lenny Letter

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In the wake of the sexual harassment scandal surrounding former Life and Death PR head Heathcliff Berru, Best Coast member and our 2015 “Song of the Summer” winner Bethany Cosentino has penned an essay on music business misogyny for Lena Dunham’s newsletter Lenny Letter.

Throughout the piece (entitled Burgers, Bitches and Bullsh*t), Cosentino talks about the difference between the way the industry treats her vs. her male bandmates. And how even non-celebrities face similar situations via the connectivity of social media.

“It seems women can’t do much of anything in public without someone making a misogynistic crack. Why has it become acceptable for ‘criticism’ to take the form of abusive online commentary or vulgar, inappropriate heckling?”

She pointed out several examples of the press reviewing her shows in a sexist manner, with one review essentially telling Bethany that she should “smile more.”

“For example, I recently read a review that mostly lauded a Best Coast show — it specified how great the band sounded and how ‘sexy’ I looked — but it bemoaned my lack of smiling. This article has, and continues to, deeply trouble me. This reviewer’s gendered critique of my presence onstage revealed how he thought a woman who he saw as “sexy” should behave. It also showed how ideas about the sexualization of women are reinforced. Many people did not see the underlying sexism of the review. In fact, in the social media referencing the article, countless people attacked me with comments like “Get over it! He complimented you! Quit being a whiny b*tch!…When someone critiques Best Coast’s live performance because “Bethany looks like a miserable b*tch onstage,” it is a gendered attack.”

Cosentino added that the men in her band are not required to smile and get a pass from reviewers.

“What the f*ck is it about a woman that makes everyone think we need to be smiling all the time to prove to the world we are having a good time?” she said.

To read more of Bethany’s story — including her own personal experiences with Berru — check out the rest of the essay at Lenny. Then, take a look at our interview with Cosentino from last year.

(Via Stereogum)

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