Image credit: John Fornander

The electronic music business value dropped by 54% due to the pandemic but there were signs of growth in the recorded music sector.

Recently, the IMS released its Business Report which looked into the health of the dance music business over the past year. It’s clear to see how Covid-19 has impacted the electronic music business, especially as there has been a standstill in regards to live events. However, it’s not all doom and gloom as recorded music saw a boom in 2020.

The shocking statistic is that the value of the electronic music business declined 54% to $3.4 billion after ten consecutive years of growth. This decline was largely driven due to the fact festivals and live events have been on hold since the outbreak back in March, meaning a drop in live revenue. However, there are positive signs that there could be a fantastic recovery in late 2021 and 2022 as live events return. We recently reported that Live Nation has booked more shows for 2022 than it did in the entirety of 2019. Not to mention they sold 170,000 festival tickets in 3 days in the UK. 

Other positive news is that the global recorded music industry grew by $1.5 billion in 2020. Sites such as Beatport saw a 33% growth with techno and house remaining the dominant force on the platform. Dance music recorded revenues also broke $1 billion in 2020 with a 7% increase in the global recorded music revenue. In addition to this physical sales also broke records with vinyl sales rocketing to a three-decade high. 

The Livestream sector also boomed with Twitch registering 1.2m new followers for top electronic music accounts. Sites such as Bandcamp are also adding a live-streaming platform to their service. 

It may seem a bit bleak on the surface but the truth is the industry is still remaining steady and is clearly ready to make a comeback. Fingers crossed for a full return to live music in late 2021 and 2022.