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Radio 1’s Tiffany Calver says she is constantly dealing with a feeling of “anxiety that comes from just trying to do my job”.
The 25-year-old became the first female DJ to host The Rap Show on Radio 1 and 1Xtra in January 2019.
Tiffany’s spoken out on social media over comments that she says suggest women in the music industry still aren’t seen as equals and get jobs by “being groupies” or sleeping with someone in power.
She adds: “I really hope we all grow up and evolve.”
“I’m learning to be ok with the ignorance and that’s not ok. We shouldn’t be accepting it,” she wrote.
Tiffany Calver became the first woman to host the prestigious Saturday night slot when she took over from Charlie Sloth 10 months ago.
She didn’t give details of the type of criticism she had faced but claimed it had been happening for some time, which is why she decided to address the issue publicly.
“I’m getting thicker skin, promise,” she wrote. “But I saw one comment too many today and I am starting to realise that by playing things down, saying nothing, and quietly trying to prove myself more because of insecurities that my male peers will never have to think about, is helping nobody.”
Tiffany follows in the footsteps of Tim Westwood and Charlie Sloth in hosting The Rap Show
As well as presenting The Rap Show, Tiffany Calver has also been the official tour DJ for artists including Drake and Fredo.
She added that the situation has improved.
“Things are much better than they once were. But there are still many ways in which women feel that they are not given a fair crack of the whip.”
Gender equality researcher, Dr Jill Armstrong, agrees.
“It’s tougher for women both in terms of the criticism and the barriers they face to getting into whatever career they choose to do.”
She says women often feel they have to work harder than their male counterparts in order to be accepted. But she adds that the same pre-conceptions apply when the roles are reversed, referring to male nurses and primary school teachers as examples of that.
“It’s not a men versus women thing. It’s what we all do.
“When men are in a role that people normally associate with women, you get those same kinds of judgments.
“Unconscious bias is something that both women and men practice. It’s just about the attitudes we have and the way that we’ve been brought up.”
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