Girls Making EDM Music
Monday, March 27, 2017
I’ve always loved music by the Chainsmokers, Calvin Harris, Major Lazor, and Martin Garrix. Girls rarely produce EDM, but I like the genre. Although I couldn’t see anyone like me in the job I want to have; I wrote, sang, and produced “Wherever You Go.”
I am a 15-year old music producer from a small town in Texas. I’ve grown up watching my older sister, Shreya Shankar, encourage women to close the gender gaps in tech by teaching girls to code across the country. I was introduced to technology at a young age and my love for computers expanded into making computer-generated music. Music production, mixing, and mastering is a branch of engineering and tech because it involves the creation of something using computer software.The more I worked in digital music production, the more I realized that it was a male-dominated field.
I first started when I was 13 by experimenting with GarageBand. I fell in love with bringing songs I wrote to life. I produced my first two songs, “Fight the Force” and “Punching Bag” in 2016. I was thrilled when my songs hit thousands of plays! I wanted more instruments to create more impactful music, so I upgraded to the Logic Pro Software. Logic Pro was more than just software instruments. If I said it was easy to master, I would be lying. I encountered a whole new world of plugins, frequencies, compressors, filters, flexing, limiters and more. I had to learn several of these features and how they enhance music through YouTube tutorials.
I have never watched a YouTube tutorial in which a girl teaches digital music production. I have never met a woman music producer, much less a woman EDM producer. I wanted to change this. I started teaching GarageBand software to young girls in my community hoping to motivate them to pursue a career in engineering or tech.
Recently, I released my upcoming EP’s first two songs titled “Faker” and “Wherever You Go.” These songs have garnered over 15,000 plays! I am excited to continue learning and growing as a producer and artist. I hope that I can inspire other women to follow their passion under any circumstance.
Here is a link to my soundcloud page and website. I would be grateful for your plays, likes, comments, and shares!
Lots of love,
Sara Shankar