2022 Impact 50: Heather Lowery

President & CEO
Femme It Forward

Heather Lowery’s Femme It Forward followed up the success of last year’s compilation album Big Femme Energy Vol. 1 – featuring a female writer on every song, led by an all-female team of artists, creatives and executives – by taking the experience live. Femme It Forward celebrated Women’s History Month with the “Big Femme Energy Live Tour” in March, featuring an all-female symphony orchestra, composer and conductor, along with live sets by Ambré, SAYGRACE, and Baby Rose, among other special guests.

Stops on the tour included the Gramercy Theatre in New York, Buckhead Theatre in Atlanta and the Belasco Theatre in Los Angeles. In April, Femme It Forward released an expanded version of the compilation album, Big Femme Energy Vol. 1 Deluxe.

As one of the most visionary executives in the music business, Lowery is using the platform of Femme It Forward to help make the industry more inclusive by empowering women and providing new opportunities, particularly for women of color.

Femme It Forward launched its inaugural Next Gem Femme mentorship program in August 2021, pairing 200 young women of color mentees with leading female executives and entrepreneurs in the music, media, entertainment, technology, and social justice industries.

“The response to and support of our mentorship program, Next Gem Femme, has been overwhelmingly inspiring, with more than 150 incredible mentors extending their knowledge to future industry powerhouses, primarily from HBCUs,” Lowery says.

Lowery began Femme It Forward in April 2019 as an event series with panels and shows featuring all-women lineups. By December 2019 Femme It Forward entered a joint venture of the same name with Live Nation, backed by president and CEO Michael Rapino.

“Whether it’s creating a stage for artists to share their voices, empowering executives to give back through mentorship, or providing opportunities for creatives through employment, we’re working toward the changes we want to see every day,” Lowery says.