The Global Recorded Industry, which encapsulates releases from independent artists, major labels and DIY performers, saw revenues of $23.1 billion, growing by 7 percent compared to 2019, according to figures by Midia. Altogether, the industry grew by $1.5 billion year-over-year during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was a bit smaller than the $2.1 billion growth seen in 2019, which displayed an 11 percent growth.

Although the pandemic caused revenues to dip during the early months of the pandemic, the global music industry bounced back by 15 percent year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2020. This has led Midia to suggest that the music industry will likely see continued growth into this year.

Around $14.2 billion in revenue was attributed to streaming services, which provided 61 percent of all revenue shares. Annual streaming growth grew by 20 percent year-over-year, while $1.2 billion was distributed in direct revenue to artists.

“The recordings business managed to deliver a strong performance due solely to the growth of streaming,” Midia MD Mark Mulligan said in a statement to Music Business Woldwide. “Streaming has been the engine room since the recorded music business returned to growth, but the fall in performance and sync revenues due to the pandemic highlighted just how overly dependent the global music business has become on streaming.”

In the United States, the recorded music industry grew by over $1 billion, with streaming accounting for 83 percent of this growth. While streaming continues to make up a bulk of the music industry’s revenue, physical sales have been increasing as well, with the RIAA claiming that vinyl sales went up 30 percent during the pandemic.

Photo Credit: Sharon Alagna