Jaded, the final release in Rhythm Lab Records series giRLs, is a sugary sweet rejection of toxic love straight from the hearts of both ends of the M62

“NIIX is the first woman I have actually worked with as a producer and it’s been such a breath of fresh air.” Martha says recollecting her previous experiences collaborating in the industry. A 2019 survey undertaken by the Berklee institute found that 78 percent of Women participants overwhelmingly agreed that they had been treated differently within the music industry, while over half (52 percent) of respondents felt that their gender had affected their employment. “I found a lot of times in the industry questioning whether or not someone wanted to work with me for my talent or whether it was because they wanted something else from me. It happened so many times and it was so demoralising and upsetting where people weren’t listening to what I was saying or how I was singing and were instead more interested in how I looked and what they could gain from that. At one point I wanted to give up completely.”

These stories are harrowing to hear and do not bode well for the state of where the music industry lies with regards to the treatment of women. In adding their voices to other organisations participating in corrective action against this problem, Rhythm Lab Records is giving paid opportunities to young women creatives both in front of and behind the mic.Their latest ongoing series of releases giRLs is dedicated to doing just that, providing a safe space where three pairs of women musicians are paid to write, produce and create a single with one another. Label Manager, Hannah O’Gorman, offers, “When the Rhythm Lab team was given the opportunity to do something for International Women’s Day, we knew we wanted it to be something truly worthwhile. We also wanted to make sure that whatever we did, it would be a jumping off point for more work throughout the year. That’s why we used International Women’s Day to announce our IWD Fund which has been used to facilitate this amazing series of collaborations! Our International Women’s Day plans have carried us well into the rest of the year and we can’t wait for you to see what’s next.”

Jaded, the third giRLs release, is a cherry sweet rejection of a love with nothing to offer. Liverpool based alt-pop phenomenon NIIX (formerly LUNA) shares her experience of crafting the soundscape that she invited singer/songwriter Martha to join her in. “It was interesting because I love working with vocals but I only ever work with my own. And as much as they are the same instrument there is such a different quality and tone to them so it was challenging, but exciting having to mould them and place them perfectly in the track. Learning to eq her vocals and gauging what effects would work perfectly on them- or if she needed any at all.” The result is a playful dance record, harkening to the self aware bubble-gum sounds of Rina Sawayama and Charli XCX, but with a shadowy detour that introduces some dark synths back into the mix.

Martha’s story has a promising ending. When asked who or what gave her the confidence to stick with the industry even through her experiences, she recalls calling home for guidance. “I phoned my mum, and she was like ‘you’re not gonna let something like this stop you, you’ve been going since you were so young and you’ve kept going. You just gotta avoid these people the best that you can and seek different people to work with and different avenues of working.’ She was the one that prompted me to take a look and see if there were any female producers and so I started looking desperately around for one and that’s when I got the call from Keely at Rhythm Lab and I was like oh my god! That’s perfect.”

‘giRLs’ is made possible by support from Youth Music and Arts Council England.