Rae Morris discusses what to expect at upcoming Girls Music Day

The two-day workshop will feature speakers such as Morris, Rosie Lowe, BBC Radio 1Xtra's Sian Anderson, METHOD MUSIC’s Katie Ray, Head of Press at 4AD Annette Lee, and Latitude's Lucy Wood.

Girls Music Day began last year in a bid to promote gender equality aned address the imbalance in the UK music industry. Clara Amfo, Laura Marling, Denai Moore, The Big Moon, Lucy Rose, and more have made appearances since the initiative launched.

"We’re excited to bring Girls Music Day back for another year," says DICE's Jen Long. "The lack of women within our industry is shocking, but it’s events like this that will help to educate, inspire and drive more girls to get involved."

Shocking is definitely one word for it - fewer than 5% of recognised producers are female, just 16% of nearly 120,000 PRS writer members are female, and less than a third of music industry-related jobs are filled by women.

We spoke to Morris about what to expect from the day, what she's looking forward to, and what we can all do to help combat the inequality.

What should people expect from Girls Music Day?

From the sounds of things it’s going be a wonderful day. It’ll be lots of talking and listening, learning, inspiring each other to look to the future and what’s possible. It’s all part of the wider conversation we need to be having about the fact that there is still a crazy lack of information and awareness about the variety of jobs that girls can go into in the music industry.

Why should people come down?

When I was 16, I made one of my first trips down to London with my parents to go to a BBC Introducing 'Masterclass' day at Abbey Road. It wasn’t specifically focused on girls in music, but it was so eye opening for me as a young person beginning to think about a career I could have. Even if it’s one very small nugget of advice that you take away from something like that, it can be incredibly helpful and stay with you.

What are you looking forward to seeing/hearing/doing on the day?

I’m looking forward to hearing the other speakers talk about their jobs and roles. I said yes to talking at this event when I was asked because I think that I’ll also learn a lot from this day. It’s rare to get the opportunity to get an in-depth insight into the working lives of other women and girls in the industry. I also want to meet the next generation!

How would you respond to someone complaining that there isn't a Boys Music Day?

I think statistics say everything. The most alarming one that I’ve heard is that only 5% of registered producers in the UK are female. That completely blows my mind and I think we’ve lived with the feeling that it was Boys Music Day everyday for a little too long now.

How do you feel about being directly involved with Girls Music Day?

I guess I feel a little nervous about my talking part! Public speaking is not something I’m used to. I’ve only had my experiences so all I can do is share them. Hopefully that may inspire somebody to take the same path as me or of course, decide to go entirely the opposite way.

What can be done after Girls Music Day to help address the issues and imbalances?

We just need to continue this conversation! Have more informative days and events like this one. We need to raise awareness about the jobs that are available to women in the industry that they maybe don’t know about or feel aren't accessible to them. Girls sticking together and talking to each other is also a big thing - spreading their ideas, being confident enough to push forward, and stand up for them without worrying about failing! It’ll take time but I believe we’ll get there.

What are you working on next?

I’ve been hidden away for a while recording my second album. It’s been a very wonderful time. I’ll be releasing something new this year.