Asked by a reporter how female executives and artists can advance in the music industry, Portnow said, in part, “It has to begin with…women who have the creativity in their hearts and souls, who want to be musicians, who want to be engineers, producers, and want to be part of the industry on the executive level…[They need] to step up because I think they would be welcome.”
A number of women in the music industry, as well as female artists like Pink and CharliXCX, took offense to what they interpreted as Portnow’s suggestion that women have failed to “step up.” Now, Portnow is attempting to clarify his remarks.
“Sunday night, I was asked a question about the lack of female artist representation in certain categories of this year’s Grammy Awards,” he said in a statement. “Regrettably, I used two words, ‘step up,’ that, when taken out of context, do not convey my beliefs and the point I was trying to make.”
The statement continues, “Our industry must recognize that women who dream of careers in music face barriers that men have never faced. We must actively work to eliminate these barriers and encourage women to live their dreams and express their passion and creativity through music. We must welcome, mentor, and empower them. Our community will be richer for it.”
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Monty Brinton/CBSFollowing a storm of criticism, Recording Academy president Neil Portnow is now walking back comments he made Sunday night at the Grammy Awards about the lack of female representation at this year’s awards show. 
