{"id":103746,"date":"2025-03-17T12:52:44","date_gmt":"2025-03-17T12:52:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/routenote.com\/blog\/?p=103746"},"modified":"2025-03-17T12:52:47","modified_gmt":"2025-03-17T12:52:47","slug":"midia-global-music-revenues-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/routenote.com\/blog\/midia-global-music-revenues-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Global recorded music market up 6.5% in 2024, hitting $36.2bn"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The IFPI’s Global Music Report lands on March 19th, but MIDiA have offered estimates ahead of then.<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The global recorded music industry generated an estimated $36.2 billion in 2024, growing by 6.5% compared to 2023. These figures, based on MIDiA Research\u2019s latest report<\/a> by analyst Mark Mulligan, reveal an industry in transition. While overall revenues are still rising, growth is slowing – especially in streaming, which has long been the dominant force in the music business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Streaming continues to be the industry\u2019s biggest revenue driver, contributing $22.2 billion in 2024. However, its growth rate has slowed to 6.2% – down from 10.3% the previous year. For the first time, streaming’s share of total recorded music revenues did not increase, remaining at 61.3%. MIDiA\u2019s report notes that despite price increases from major services, streaming revenue is beginning to plateau.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe much-anticipated streaming revenue deceleration – despite recent price increases – has now arrived,\u201d writes Mulligan. \u201cIndustry attention is turning to super-premium tiers and new monetization models to re-ignite growth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Image Credit: MIDiA<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For independent artists, this reinforces the need to explore income streams beyond just Spotify and Apple Music payouts. Relying solely on streaming royalties is becoming less sustainable, making direct-to-fan<\/a> sales, social media monetisation, and alternative platforms<\/a> more important than ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As streaming growth levels off, the music industry is shifting its attention to \u2018expanded rights\u2019 – revenue generated beyond direct music sales, including merchandise<\/a>, fan experiences, and brand partnerships. According to MIDiA, expanded rights revenues grew by 17% to $4.1 billion in 2024, now making up 11.3% of total recorded music revenues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mulligan highlights that this is becoming an essential hedge against slowing streaming growth and the “yo-yoing physical sector”. Expanded rights do “the crucial job of monetizing fandom,” he notes, pointing to the increasing importance of superfans in an artist\u2019s income.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The biggest winners in 2024 weren\u2019t the major labels, but independent artists and smaller labels. According to MIDiA, non-major label revenues grew by 8.4% to $5.4 billion, outpacing the 5.4% growth of the majors. Self-releasing artists – those distributing through platforms like RouteNote<\/a> – also saw revenue increase by 4.7% to $2.0 billion. However, the number of self-releasing artists grew even faster, reaching 8.2 million in 2024. With more artists entering the space than ever, competition for listeners and revenue is increasing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This means that independent artists need to think beyond just getting music on streaming services. Strategic promotion, smart use of analytics<\/a>, and alternative revenue streams – such as selling physical formats or offering subscriptions – are key to standing out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does all this mean for independent artists? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For those releasing music independently, MIDiA\u2019s latest report reinforces the importance of taking a broad approach to career growth:<\/p>\n\n\n\n