Spotify hosted the second annual Created by Women Summit in Los Angeles, United States, drawing 500 guests from songwriting, producing, and publishing. Since its launch last year, the summit has focused on building community, mentorship, and connection across the music industry.
Panels and interviews at Spotify’s Los Angeles office covered topics including working parenthood in music, Black women in songwriting, and cross-border creative collaboration. Dustee Jenkins, Spotify’s Chief Public Affairs Officer, hosted the keynote with songwriter Liz Rose.
In her welcome remarks, Jenkins said: “Today is about you. And it’s about what we can do together to make sure more people understand what you do and how much it matters. Your songs are traveling further and finding more listeners around the world. Fans want to build deeper connections with the artists and songs they love. They don’t want to just hear the songs, they want to know who made them.”
The Heart & Soul Wellness Lounge, created with mental health and wellness nonprofit Backline, offered attendees massages, nutrition consultations, and information about support resources. Live performances were also part of the program, and the summit closed with a mixer for attendees to continue conversations.
Featured artists on community, balance, and legacy#
Featured songwriters and artists discussed community, grounding practices, and the work that reflects their legacies.
- St. Vincent: “Tori Amos definitely helped me find my voice when I was younger, and I was lucky enough to become friends with her later on. But so many people in my orbit, on my team or other artists, are strong, brilliant, hardworking women. I never really felt like I was at a loss for that kind of community. I mean, growing up all I had to do was turn on MTV, and there’s Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth, there’s PJ Harvey. Going back, I had Nina Simone and Erykah Badu, my hero of heroes. I was also lucky enough to get to meet a lot of rad, like-minded women in all facets of the industry who are great at what they do and help create a community.”
- Diane Warren: “There were a lot of women songwriters back in the day who really helped build the foundation of my career, like Carole King, Cynthia Weil, and Ellie Greenwich. Those women helped write some of the best songs of all time.”
- Ali Tamposi: “I have a very strong support system outside of the music industry. I’ve also worked really hard to separate my personal life from ‘Ali the songwriter.’ I have a family and a kid, so that has become the most important piece of my life. Creating music is just the cherry on top; it’s not everything. It’s been difficult to get here, but now when I get any kind of rejection it doesn’t hurt as much because, at the end of the day, we’re just writing songs.”
- Leona Lewis: “We’re in an industry that just requires a lot of you. It’s 24/7, 365 days a year. But you have to give yourself pause and recognize when you need time to look after yourself and your well-being, especially as a mom, because you need to show up for both you and your child.”
- Nija Charles: “It says a lot when a collaborator can look me in the eye, and be like, ‘What do you think? What would you do?’ That makes me feel like we’re all equal, we’re all contributing an equal amount, and I’m not just an afterthought.”
- Lori McKenna: “That’s a really hard question! I guess the song that I think represents me really well would be ‘People Get Old.’ I’m obsessed with age, and it’s a song that I wrote about my dad. I’ve been proud of the way that song has aged along with me.”
