Music Industry Statistics and Facts for 2024

The music industry is ever-changing, especially with the current pandemic. The future of the music industry is uncertain but it will continue to evolve that is for sure. Adapting is key to surviving and thriving in this industry.

This is a list of some of the most important facts and statistics about the music industry. We update this list regularly to stay up to date with current trends. The data in this article highlights the major changes that the music industry is going through.

Music Industry Statistics

According to IFPI’s global music report, the global music industry increased by 7.4 percent in 2020 in comparison to 2019.

The total value of the recording industry in 2020 was $21.6bn US Dollars

ifpi

The United States is the biggest market for digital music consumption.

The market generating the highest revenue for digital music consumption is the United States, at $6.7bn US dollars in 2020, followed by China with $1.6 billion US dollars.

Statista

The music industry took a major turn in 2020, with live music canceled across the globe. This resulted in a major decline in live ticket sales.

Live ticket sales dropped from 57 million in 2019 to just over 13 million tickets in 2020.

Statista

However, live music still made up a relatively small portion of overall income in the music industry even before 2020.

Digital revenues were 88% of the total U.S. music industry in 2018

riaa

$5.8bn is being pumped into A&R across the world, which is the role responsible for talent scouting and the commercial and artistic development of music artists

$5.8bn is invested in A&R and marketing by record labels annually

ifpi

Music Streaming Statistics

Music streaming is continuously gaining as the standard method of consuming music. Digital music consumption and streaming services now account for a major portion of revenues in the total global music industry.

In 2019, the music streaming revenue increased by close to 23 percent, accounting for 56 percent of the total recorded music revenue.

Statista

In the first quarter of 2021, the number of music streaming subscribers worldwide amounted to 487 million.

Statista

18.5% growth in paid streaming revenues in 2020.

ifpi

In 2019, Spotify was the most popular music streaming platform with 35 percent of consumers using the service.

Statista

62.1% of global industry revenue comes from streaming.

ifpi

More Than 1.2 trillion songs streamed on demand in 2018.

riaa

Music Statistics

Pop music is the most popular music genre in the world, with around 64% of the 19,000 respondents from 18 countries. The second in line was rock music with 57%, while the third was electronic/house music with 32%.

Statista

Most people (54%) identify as ‘loving’ music or being ‘fanatical’ about music. Among 16 – 24-year-olds, this rises to 63%.

ifpi

According to statistics on music education, students who study music do better in maths and English examinations.

Science Daily

9/10 social media users do music related social media activity

Music Watch

Music NFTs

As the pandemic took the world by storm, the NFT market has been rising and slowly taking over the globe. With musical NFTs making an entrance on the market, the world was in for a treat, and can you guess who started all of it?

Kings of Leon released their latest album as an NFT for a few days in March 2021, with sales being worth several hundreds of Ethereum. The rock group is the first (major) band ever to do such a thing.

Statista

The music world was fond of this idea immediately, with great market sales and overall respect and value for NFTs, this is something that will likely be the norm in the future.

Sales of digital assets through blockchain grew to a size of tens of millions of U.S. dollars in early 2021, as several artists got involved in NFTs.

Statista

Music NFT Market Size Value was US$ 1.35 billion in 2021.

Business Research Insights

EDM artists were early leaders in the NFT world.

Billboard

Conclusion

The music industry has seen a lot of change in 2020, with the pandemic and its effects on the world. However, this change has not been all negative, as live music is declining while digital music and streaming are on the rise. Additionally, NFTs have taken over the market and are likely to continue doing so.

In conclusion, it seems that the music industry is adapting and evolving to the current situation, which could lead to even more change in the future.

Brian Clark

Brian Clark

I’ve been a writer with Musician Wave for six years, turning my 17-year journey as a multi-instrumentalist and music producer into insightful news, tutorials, reviews, and features.

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