‘Twenty-first-century Woman’ is a ground-breaking musical project for International Women’s Day 2019. Its centrepiece is a brand new gospel-style song for women’s voices and band, composed by Joanna Forbes L’Estrange, with lyrics inspired by Oprah Winfrey’s famous 2018 Golden Globes acceptance speech. It was recorded at Abbey Road Studios on 22nd November 2018 (St Cecilia’s Day) by stars of London’s West End, singers from Hollywood film soundtracks and an all-female band of top London session musicians. The Twenty-first-century Woman single was released on all music platforms on 8 March 2019, International Women’s Day. All proceeds from downloads of the song are being donated to Her Future Coalition, a charity providing shelter, education and employment to girls in India who were victims of human trafficking and gender violence.
Twenty-first-century Woman has already made history by being the first recording session of a song which was written, conducted, sung, played, engineered, produced, mixed and mastered entirely by women
How you can get involved…
• Download the Twenty-first-century Woman single for just 79p
• Share the Twenty-first-century Woman music video which features an illustrious cast of high-profile women including Joanna Lumley OBE, Prue Leith CBE, Joanne Harris MBE, Ruby Wax OBE, Wendy Cope OBE, Dame Jenni Murray, Sister Cristina Scuccia, The Right Reverend Dame Sarah Mullally, Bishop of London, and many more….
• Buy the Twenty-first-century Woman sheet music and sing it with your choir (there’s a version for SATB choir as well as the original version)
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• Follow us on social media at Twenty-first-century Woman and become part of the #weare campaign, celebrating all of the ways in which women make a positive contribution to society
• Read Joanna’s blog to find out the back-story to Twenty-first-century Woman
Girls, don’t get ideas above your station!
A True Story
A man’s world
Girls can’t be choristers
The feminist male
• Listen to interviews with Joanna
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RECORDING CREDITS
Singers: Roshani Abbey, Gina Beck, Sara Brimer, Mary Carewe, Sarah Eyden, Alice Fearn, Hazel Fernandes, Joanna Forbes L’Estrange, Emma Kershaw, Jo Marshall, Melanie Marshall, Lucy Potterton, Liz Swain, Rebecca Trehearn
Solo girl: Alicia Marsden
Band: Andrea Vicari (piano), Inga Eichler (bass), Sophie Alloway (drums), Rosie Frater-Taylor (guitar)
Engineer: Isabel Gracefield
Assistant engineer: Alice Bennett
Producer/Mix/Mastering: Isabel Gracefield
Videographer: Katy Jackson
MD: Joanna Forbes L’Estrange
LYRICS Twenty-first-century Woman song
A new day is on the horizon
And when the sun rises up to brighten that day
It will be because for many generations
Women took a risk for the right to have their say;
We are raising the leaders of the future –
We need to teach them well or how will they know
To press for change, to stand up and be counted?
We’ve come so far but there’s such a long way to go.
So what does it take to be a twenty-first-century woman?
Cos we need to make a stand for the twenty-first-century woman.
We are fighting for an end to all injustice
So every girl can learn to speak her truth without fear;
We fight for parity in pay and education
For equal opportunities in every career;
We must be brave and we must keep on believing,
No more pretending we don’t mind cos those days are gone;
Now’s the time to spread the word across all nations –
No one can silence us and still the truth marches on.
So what does it take to be a twenty-first-century woman?
Cos we need to make a stand for the twenty-first-century woman.
We are doctors, politicians,
We’re conductors, musicians,
We are poets, we are writers
We are even fire-fighters,
We are sisters, we are strivers,
We are cancer survivors,
We are actors, we are dancers,
We have questions and we have answers.
We are bishops, we are preachers,
We are nuns, we are teachers,
We are cleaners, we are carers,
Some of us are child bearers,
We’re composers, we’re presenters,
We are authors, inventors,
And we won’t give up the fight
Until we have equal rights.
We are surgeons, we’re opticians,
We are nurses, beauticians,
We are trainers, entertainers,
We are tireless campaigners,
We are bankers, we are bakers,
We are wives and home-makers;
The list is endless and that’s the way it should be
Till every girl can grow up to be who she wants to be.
And that is what it takes to be a twenty-first-century woman.
Lyrics ©2018 Joanna Forbes L’Estrange
Music ©2018 Joanna Forbes L’Estrange
Q&A “what does it take to be a twenty-first-century woman?”
The chorus of Twenty-first-century woman poses the question “what does it take to be a twenty-first-century woman?” and the answer comes in the form of the many professions which women occupy, including some which were traditionally closed to women: preachers, bishops, firefighters, surgeons etc. The message is strong: the Twenty-first-century women is someone who can be anything she chooses to be, without being disadvantaged by her gender, whether that be a carer or the president of the United States of America. We need to keep up the fight “until every girl (across the world) can grow up to be who she wants to be”. Find out what the musicians who recorded the single said in response to question “what does it take to be a twenty-first-century woman?” below…
ROSHANI ABBEY – Singer/Actor/Choreographer
What does the term “twenty-first-century woman” mean to you?
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
No matter what you do, wherever you go, don’t ever lose yourself. You will get weather-beaten as life goes along and when it does it is easy to want to develop a hard stubborn shell. When you are tempted to do that, remind yourself that being flexible, kind, and vulnerable takes greater courage and stronger self, and don’t give in!
GINA BECK – Singer, currently starring as Miss Honey in Matilda
GINA BECK – Singer, currently starring as Miss Honey in Matilda
Which women have influenced you and why?
My stepsister Dr Clare Chambers who is a political philosopher specialising in feminism, contemporary liberalism, theories of social justice, and social construction. She’s also the author of two novels and the most kick-ass woman I know!
What does the term “21st-century woman” mean to you?
It means a woman who not only achieves whatever it is she wants to achieve or whatever field she wants to work in but also feels no social limitations to achieve those goals. Hopefully, by the end of the 21st century, all things will be equal.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
Pick up your cues and only pause onstage if you really feel you’ve earned it!
SARA BRIMER DAVEY – Singer
SARA BRIMER DAVEY– Singer
Which women have influenced you and why?
The women in my family have been a solid representation of power, love, knowledge, bravery, and talent. They have shown me what I’m made of.
What does the term “21st-century woman” mean to you?
A 21st Century Woman is someone who knows herself. She strives for the good of people around her while looking out for her own needs. She does not hide, she does not blame, she is knowledgeable about current events, she cares about the past and looks forward to the future. The 21st Century Woman is always learning. She examines each situation, tradition, each rule, each standard and asks herself “Is this good for me? Is this enough? Is this just?” and if something needs changing she is active and creative. She loves the Earth.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
“Whatever you are feeling, feel it fully. Don’t shove it down, don’t wipe it away, don’t ignore it. Feel it with all your being. Only then can you learn from it and grow.
MARY CAREWE – Singer, Star of Stage & Screen
MARY CAREWE– Singer, Star of Stage & Screen
Which women have influenced you and why?
Dame Margot Fonteyn, as a child, and Liza Minelli, once a teenager were my idols. Both women who are iconic performers. My mum instilled in me the importance of hard work to achieve your potential.
What does the term “21st-century woman” mean to you?
A confident woman who respects and embraces all of humanity and recognises the fragility of our planet and wants to make a difference.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
Real success is earning the confidence and admiration of your professional colleagues – not fame and fortune.
SARAH EYDEN – Singer, Concert Artist & Actress
It’s not all about you.
ALICE FEARN – Singer, currently starring as Elphaba in Wicked
ALICE FEARN– Singer, currently starring as Elphaba in Wicked
Which women have influenced you and why?
My mother has always been my main influence. She has shown (and continues to show) how hard work and determination will always pay off.
What does the term “21st-century woman” mean to you?
It means having the strength of mind to challenge anyone who tells you something is impossible. It’s standing up for what you believe is right and achieving whatever you set out to do.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
Don’t let the no’s get you down.
JOANNA FORBES L’ESTRANGE – Singer/songwriter/conductor. Wrote Twenty-first-century woman song
JOANNA FORBES L’ESTRANGE – Singer/songwriter/conductor. Wrote Twenty-first-century woman song
Which women have influenced you and why?
My godmother, Ann Hummel. She was told at school in the 1950s that, as a girl, her best option was to become a secretary; through sheer hard work and determination she became a successful BBC TV producer and taught me that hard work pays off. Also, my mum, foster mum, step-mum, mother-in-law and step-mother-in-law who’ve all triumphed over adversity of different kinds.
What does the term “21st-century woman” mean to you?
Women in the 21st century should be brought up to believe that they can be anything they want to be. Girls should be given exactly the same opportunities and encouragement to fulfil their potential as boys are. This is still not the case in many parts of the world.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
If not me, who? If not now, when? Don’t wait for the right opportunity; create it.
EMMA KERSHAW – Singer, Concert artist & actress
From my Grandmother. Be courageous. Fear can stop you achieving your dreams.
JO MARSHALL – Singer & actress
JO MARSHALL – Singer & actress
Never let fear of failure stop you from achieving your goals.
LUCY POTTERTON – Singer, Vocalist & Songwriter
Some of the most beautiful things in life are often the most terrifying.
Be curious – ask questions and then listen to the answers. Life is too short not to enjoy yourself!
REBECCA TREHEARN – Singer, Olivier Award-winning actress/singer
REBECCA TREHEARN – Singer, Olivier Award-winning actress/singer, currently starring in Rags
Comparison is the thief of joy.
ALICIA MARSDEN (11) – Soloist on Twenty-first-century woman & member of London Youth Choir
ALICIA MARSDEN (11) – Soloist on Twenty-first-century woman & member of London Youth Choir
In life – always be kind and don’t let anybody bully you or, even if they know it could be true, you still believe that you can be strong.
Accept yourself and if you want to change it has to come from you.
Know thyself.
ROSIE FRATER-TAYLOR – Guitarist
As an artist, find your people. There are so many musicians out there who like the same music as you, who create similar music to you, find them and collaborate, have lessons, make connections, be inspired, start projects, be creative, form a band and so on. The music business is a community and it’s so much easier to tackle when you have people on your side.
ISABEL GRACEFIELD – Sound engineer & producer
Listen. And assume anyone could be your future best friend.
WITH THANKS TO
All of the women who appear in the music video: Dr Anna Gilham, Dr Rosena Allin-Khan MP, Sofi Jeannin, Sophie Alloway, Wendy Cope OBE, Ruby Wax OBE, Shaunagh Brown. Louise Marshall, Melanie Marshall, The Military Wives Choirs, Dame Jenni Murray DBE, Joanna Lumley OBE, Lauren Steadman, The Right Reverend and Right Honourable Dame Sarah Mullally DBE, The Reverend Lucy Winkett, Sister Cristina Scuccia, Catherine Barker, Radka Bozhidarova Dineva, Linda Trehearn, Margaret Hastie, Mel Owen Hewitt, Jasmin Paris, Catherine Bott, Joanne Harris MBE, Mandy Haberman, Wendie Oxlade-Chamberlain, Dr Rachel Evans, Azra Jivraj, the nursing staff at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, Caroline Hirons, The Harlequins women’s rugby team, Vickii Cornborough, Leanne Riley, Mel Giedroyc, Carol Pearson, LLoyds Banking Group, Prue Leith CBE, Moira Cameron
All of the women who continue to do so today