Rike van Kleef | Billige Plätze

Every year, millions of people make a pilgrimage to festivals in order to lose themselves in escapism, in ecstasy, and in a boundless sense of freedom – and of course, also in music. To this day, the music is predominantly performed by men. But why is that? Despite all the success of female artists and the growing calls for more diversity, the 2025 festival summer is once again characterised by male-dominated line-ups. How can this persistent injustice be explained? And what does it say about the music industry?

For her non-fiction book ‘Billige Plätze – Gender, Macht und Diskriminierung in der Musikbranche’ (‘Cheap Seats – Gender, Power, and Discrimination in the Music Industry’), Rike van Kleef spoke to numerous players in the live and festival industry. She paints a revealing portrait of the industry and examines the difficulties that FLINTA* artists face, how power structures in the industry work, why women still earn less, and what the situation is regarding the safety of female and queer musicians in times of post-#MeToo. Van Kleef also shows what the path to more gender equality could look like: how bookers can find more diverse line-ups, what would make festivals safe spaces for FLINTA*s, and how male-dominated structures can be dissolved. ‘Billige Plätze’ was published by ventil Verlag in May 2025.

FLINTA* stands for women, lesbians, intersex, non-binary, trans, and agender people.