Apple Music's Jimmy Iovine finds himself in hot water after making some remarkable comments yesterday in an interview alongside Mary J. Blige on CBS This Morning. Discussing the streaming service's new campaign targeted women, Iovine showed his age with a hint of demeaning sexism by saying that women "find it very difficult to find music." In response to the uproar of his comments, Iovine has backtracked and apologized.
In a statement, Iovine said "he could have chosen his words better."
"We created Apple Music to make finding the right music easier for everyone - men and women, young and old. Our new ad focuses on women, which is why I answered the way I did, but of course the same applies equally for men. I could have chosen my words better, and I apologize," says Iovine in a statement via Billboard.
In the interview with CBS This Morning, sitting next to Mary J. Blige and being asked questions by Gayle King, who has defended him for some reason, Iovine came right out of the gate with his highly questionable comments.
Asked about the thinking behind the commercials, Iovine said, "So I always knew that women find it very difficult at times - some women - to find music. And this helps makes it easier with playlists, curated by real people. They're not made by algorithms alone - they're made by algorithms but with a human touch." He commented that Blige affirmed his belief right before they went on.
That wasn't all folks. Iovine continued the old man comments espousing their combination of human and algorithm curated playlists, saying, "I just thought of a problem: girls are sitting around talking about boys. Or complaining about boys! They need music for that, right? It's hard to find the right music. Not everyone... knows a DJ."
Apple recruited Mary J Blige, Kerry Washington and Taraji P. Henson for a series of commercials targeted at women.
These comments are downright disrespectful to women all over the globe who not only work in the music industry, but also women in general. It shouldn't have to be said, but there is no innate trait that gives men the ability to find and curate music better than woman. This is absolutely ludicrous and if Iovine truly believes that then Apple Music may need a new head soon.
