The music industry is constantly evolving, even more so nowadays thanks to the accessibility of music streaming platforms and social media. What once relied on physical album sales and radio play has transformed into an industry driven by algorithms, viral moments, and global accessibility. Genres rise and fall in popularity faster than ever, independent artists can find massive success without a record label, and AI is beginning to play a role in music creation.
Whether you’re a casual listener, an aspiring artist, or just fascinated by the business of music, here are 60+ eye-opening music industry statistics you’ll want to know!
How much is the global music industry worth in 2025?
The global music industry is projected to be worth around $65.45 billion in 2025, which is an increase of 7.8% from 2024 ($60.73 billion). The projected growth is due to the growing digital music industry, which is expected to rise to $29 billion in 2025. In 2024, Spotify alone contributed a whopping $10 billion to the global music industry and contributed nearly $60 billion since its founding.
The music industry’s upward trajectory is expected to continue, with forecasts suggesting it will approach $84.73 billion by 2029.
Countries with the largest music industries
Music is big everywhere in the world, but where is it biggest? Which countries have the largest music industries? It comes as no surprise that some of the largest countries in the world also have the largest music industries.
1. United States
The USA comes in first. In fact, the USA has long held its number-one position as the largest music industry in the world by a long shot. In fact, the US’s influence in the music industry grows year after year, with a 7.2% growth in a year, according to the most recent figures. The United States has an estimated music revenue of $17.1 billion. Many of the world’s biggest pop stars are based in the USA, including Taylor Swift, Jay-Z, and Rihanna.
2. Japan
Japan has held the crown for second place for a while now and continues to do so today. In fact, sales grew by 7.6%, according to the most recent figures. In 2024, total revenues are estimated at $7 billion. Interestingly, unlike many other countries, physical sales continue to play a significant role in Japan’s music industry. Japan has a thriving J-Pop scene, with groups like YOASOBI and Official HIGE DANdism dominating the charts. Anime and video game soundtracks also contribute to the country’s global music influence.
3. United Kingdom
The UK secures takes the spot as the third-largest music market in the world, experiencing an impressive 8.1% growth and revenue of $3.8 billion. Boasting a rich history of shaping global music trends over the years, the UK continues to produce chart-topping artists and influential bands. From legacy acts like The Beatles and Queen to modern stars like Ed Sheeran and Dua Lipa, the UK remains a powerhouse in the industry.
4. Germany
Germany boasts the fourth-largest music industry in the world with a 7% growth and revenue of around $2.6 billion euros. Known for its relatively strong physical sales and a thriving electronic music scene, Germany’s music industry remains one of the most lucrative in Europe.
5. China
China is the fastest-growing music market in the top 10, with a staggering 25.9% increase. As streaming platforms like NetEase Cloud Music dominate the industry, China’s influence in the global music market is skyrocketing. The country has also produced major pop sensations like Xiao Zhan and Jay Chou.
Largest record labels
More than 80% of the market share in the record label industry falls under three conglomerates: Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, and Warner Music Group.
Universal Music Group
Market share 39.19%
UMG is the biggest record label by quite some margin. They have absorbed MANY record labels, including Abbey Road Studios, Def Jam Recordings, Motown, Virgin Records, and many more.
Sony Music Entertainment
Market share 27.87%
Sony is the fastest-growing of the “big three” record labels. SME owns Columbia Records, Epic Records, RCA Records, and more. Sony is also the most profitable record label and has more than doubled its revenue since 2014. The company made over 10 billion dollars in revenue in 2024, up from 4.5 billion in 2014.
Warner Music Group
Market share 19.09%
Warner Music Group is the 3rd biggest music label in the world. The company owns some major labels, such as Elektra, Atlantic, Reprise, and Parlophone. Warner Music Group is the newest of the “big three” labels, having been founded in 1958. Since then, the company has grown significantly and absorbed several other major labels.
Want more stats and facts about the music industry? Feel free to contact me!
Biggest music streaming services in 2025
Streaming is now, by far, the main way most people get their music. In fact, more than 80% of Americans listen to music almost exclusively on streaming platforms. And there are more than 600 million music subscribers worldwide. Here are the most popular streaming platforms by their total subscribers.
Spotify
Subscribers: 640 million
Spotify remains the crown jewel of music streaming in 2025. The platform has access to over 100 million songs and over 6 million podcasts. The platform is also praised for its advanced algorithms to create personalized playlists. The reason Spotify is so popular is that it offers a free subscription, making it an incredibly accessible app.
Tencent Music
Subscribers: 119 million
Tencent Music is China’s biggest music streaming platform. This platform currently has a whopping 200 million songs. Tencent has three apps for music streaming: KuGou, QQ, and Kuwo. The apps are only available in simplified Chinese.
YouTube Music
Subscribers: 100 million
Like any good music streaming platform, YouTube Music has access to over 100 million songs. The relatively new competitor to the streaming market only came out in 2015 and has grown immensely in popularity. YouTube music also gives subscribers the ability to watch music videos ad-free.
Apple Music
Subscribers: 93 million
The creators of the iPod and iTunes have adapted to the demand for music streaming and created Apple Music, the third most popular streaming service. And while Spotify has way more subscribers, Apple Music is the ideal choice if music quality matters to you.
Amazon Music
Subscribers: 80 million
Amazon Music has over 100 million available songs, so you can ask Alexa to play you basically any song or artist. The sound quality of Amazon music is equal to that of CDs, while other platforms lack a bit in sound quality; that said, it isn’t really a noticeable difference if you aren’t a professional. The reason for Amazon Music’s popularity is that it comes free with an Amazon Prime subscription.
SoundCloud
Subscribers: 76 million
SoundCloud is one of the world’s largest music streaming platforms in the world, boasting over 320 million tracks from artists, both big and small. While it may not have the reach that behemoths like Spotify may have, it still holds a relatively large percentage of the music streaming platform market.
NetEase
Subscribers: 44 million
NetEase is yet another major streaming platform that is available only in mainland China. NetEase Cloud Music currently has access to over 100 million songs, with many independent artists signed up on the platform.
Deezer
Subscribers: 10.5 million monthly users (6 million paid subscribers)
Deezer is a French-based streaming service that is popular in Western Europe and Latin America. The company is estimated to have a 1.3% market share of the music streaming market. And while this is not a significant amount, it is definitely a player.
Most streamed songs of 2024
Here are the top 10 streamed songs in 2024, according to Spotify.
- “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” by Billie Eilish: 2.1 billion streams
- “Roses” by SAINt JHN: 2 billion streams
- “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter: 2 billion streams
- “Die With A Smile” by Lady Gaga: 1.9 billion streams
- “Beautiful Things” by Benson Boone: 1.8 billion streams
- “Who” by Jimin: 1.5 billion streams
- “Gata Only” by FloyyMenor: 1.5 billion streams
- “Too Sweet” by Hozier: 1.3 billion streams
- “Good Luck, Babe!” by Chappell Roan: 1.3 billion streams
- “Please Please Please” by Sabrina Carpenter: 1.3 billion streams
Physical album sales
Physical albums (CDs, cassettes, and vinyl) were all the rage until the iPod took over. Nowadays, streaming is by far the most popular way people listen to music. That said, in the past few years, the rise in popularity of vinyl has seen the first increase in physical music record sales in more than 20 years. This sudden increase in vinyl sales has been deemed the “vinyl revival”.
- Vinyl record sales saw an increase of 6.2% from 2023.
- Taylor Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department” was the most popular record in 2024.
- Older records also sold lots of vinyl last year, such as “Definitely Maybe” by Oasis (2nd after TTPD) and “Rumours” by Fleetwood Mac.
- Total audio album consumption in the USA increased by 5.6% in 2024 to a whopping 1.1 billion.
Top TikTok Songs
TikTok has created a platform for new artists to go viral easier than ever before. And the platform has changed the music industry in a completely new way. Check out my article diving into the music industry and TikTok.
Best Selling Albums of 2024 in the USA
Here are the top best-selling albums in the USA of 2024 by TEA (Total Equivalent Album Units), which includes physical and digital album sales as well as single song purchases and streams.
- The Tortured Poets Department by Taylor Swift: 3.491 million. It’ll come as no surprise to anyone that Taylor Swift takes the crown as the best-selling album in the United States. In fact, all 14 songs from TTPD were in the top 14 spots on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at one point.
- Hit Me Hard and Soft by Billie Eilish: 570,000. All 10 songs from Eilish’s new album debuted in the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, with the lead single, “Lunch,” debuting at number 5.
- Days Before Rodeo by Travis Scott: 493,000. This album is the best-selling hip-hop album of the year, with the mixtape setting records for vinyl sales, comprising 149,000 units, the largest for any rap album.
- Short n’ Sweet by Sabrina Carpenter: 484,000. Carpenter was the star of the summer with her hits of the year, like “Espresso” and “Please Please Please”. This is Carpenter’s first number one album on the Billboard 200.
- The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess by Chappell Roan: 472,000. Another pop star that blew up at the start of summer is Chappell Roan, thanks to her hits like “Good Luck Babe!” and “Pink Pony Club”, both of which appeared in the Top 10.
- ATE by Stray Kids: 449,000. Stray Kids, a K-pop sensation, was the first group ever to debut at number one on the Billboard 200 with their first five (yes, five!) charting albums, with ATE being their fifth album on the Top 200 list.
- 1989 (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift: 414,000. Yet another Taylor Swift album makes the cut as one of the best-selling albums of 2024. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is a re-release of a previous album that was released in 2014 by her ex-label.
Honorable mentions
Romance: Untold by ENHYPHEN: 378,000. Another K-pop boy group made the cut! While none of the songs reached top 10 in the charts, it’s a testament to their dedicated fans.
Lover by Taylor Swift: 343,000. Yep, that’s right — another Taylor Swift album comes in as the ninth best-selling album of 2024 in the USA! This is Swift’s first album after her departure from her previous label and was released in 2019.
Most popular music genres worldwide in 2025
Rock was huge in the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s, but the genre has been on a decline in the past few decades, especially among the younger audience. Here are the top music genres worldwide in 2025.
1. Hip-Hop/Rap
Hip-hop is the biggest genre in the USA for those aged 12-30, outperforming all other genres by some margin. That said, rap and hip-hop are yet to catch on to this extent worldwide. Rap has exploded in the US in the past few decades and has completely transformed since the days of Will Smith and Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. The most prominent hip-hop artists right now are Kendrick Lamar, Travis Scott, Tyler the Creator, Future, and Drake.
2. Pop
As the name suggests, “pop” music is the most popular genre worldwide. Everyone knows big pop idols in the USA or the UK, such as Beyoncé, Sabrina Carpenter, Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, Ed Sheeran, etc. But let’s take a look at some of the subdivisions of pop music that are trending around the world.
3. Reggaeton
Reggaeton is best described as a blend of American hip-hop, Latin American dance music, and Caribbean music. The genre originated in the 1980s and slowly gained popularity across Latin America, but it wasn’t until the mid-2010s that it became widespread across the United States and Europe. Now, reggaeton is one of the most popular genres in the world. Some of the most prominent reggaeton artists are Bad Bunny, Maluma, Karol G, and J Balvin.
4. K-Pop
Korean pop has exploded in recent years! South Korea has put billions of dollars into its music, film, and television industries to promote Korean entertainment around the world. A lot has changed since Psy dropped “Gangnam Style”. K-Pop is now fully in the mainstream, with nearly 200 million fans worldwide! The biggest K-pop names right now are BTS, Stray Kids, TWICE, and BLACKPINK.
5. Rock/Alternative
While rock isn’t at its peak anymore, it is still very much a big genre in the USA. If you combine rock, hard rock, indie rock, alternative, and heavy metal, then rock music is the most popular genre. However, the popularity of the genre is declining among younger listeners. With that said, listeners aged 30 and up are still rocking out! The most popular current rock artists are Zach Brian, Noah Kahan, Hozier, Jelly Roll, and Linkin Park.
6. Country/Western
While it may not be the most popular music for some people, country music is still widely listened to. In fact, country music has recently experienced a surge and is considered one of the fastest-growing music genres in the USA. The most prominent country artists right now are Morgan Wallen, Luke Combs, Luke Bryan, and Shaboozey. Interestingly, artists like Beyoncé and Post Malone have recently released country albums of their own.
7. EDM
Electronic Dance Music, or EDM, continues to dominate music festivals, clubs, and streaming platforms around the world. While the genre saw a massive boom in the early 2010s with artists like Avicii, Calvin Harris, and David Guetta, it has since evolved into a more diverse and expansive scene. Subgenres like house, techno, drum & bass, and melodic bass are driving the modern EDM movement. Some of the most prominent EDM artists right now include Martin Garrix, Anyma, Fisher, and Peggy Gou.
Top 10 richest musicians in 2025
Musicians are richer than ever in the 2020s. Who are the richest ones today?
1. Jay Z
Net worth: $3.71 billion
Jay Z has sold over 140 million records, so his massive wealth shouldn’t be surprising. That said, the majority of his wealth has come from his entrepreneurial activity. His main business is Roc Nation, an entertainment business, talent agency, sports agency, and record label. He also holds plenty of stakes in successful companies like Uber and SpaceX.
2. Rhianna
Net worth: $2.08 billion
Rihanna is one of the most popular and famous musicians of the 21st century and is one of the rifches musicians in the world. Of course, her music plays a big part in her initial monetary success, but her brands, Fenty Beauty and Savage x Fenty, are the primary reason for her wealth. She is one of the youngest self-made billionaires in the USA and one of the richest female celebrities in the world (second to Oprah Winfrey).
3. Sir Paul Mccartney
Net worth: $1.83 billion
Paul Mccartney was one of the main songwriters of the most famous band in history, The Beatles. The Beatles have an immortal sound and are still selling albums to this day. With over 600 million albums and 1.6 BILLION (not a typo) singles sold, The Beatles are the best-selling artist of all time. Sir Paul Mccartney owns the entire Beatles library, which consists of nearly 200 original songs, and continues to get millions in royalties to this day.
4. Taylor Swift
Net worth: $1.63 billion
It may not come as a surprise to you that Taylor Swift is one of the richest musicians in the world, thanks in large part to her highly successful tour, The Eras Tour. The Eras Tour has helped Swift amass a whopping $900 million from royalties and touring. Taylor Swift also re-released her albums, making her catalog one of the most valuable in the world. Interestingly, Taylor Swift is the first musician ever to become a billionaire from only music, which is really commendable.
5. Bruce Springsteen
Net worth: $1.6 billion
Bruce Springsteen has built his fortune through decades of sold-out stadium tours and chart-topping albums. He built a large chunk of his wealth when he sold his entire music catalog for a whopping $550 million, which is considered one of the biggest music catalog sales of all time, adding to his past earnings from record sales and live performances.
6. Madonna
Net worth: $1.26 billion
Madonna is the best-selling female artist of all time, selling an estimated 335 million albums and singles worldwide. All of her albums have surpassed platinum status by a long shot, and her live concerts are always completely sold out. Her enormously successful career is responsible for her impressive wealth.
7. Herb Albert
Net worth: $1.25 billion
Herb Alpert is a famous trumpeter who led the Tijuana Brass Band and co-founded A&M Records with Jerry Moss. He sold the record company for over $500 million in 1989. This, combined with his extensive music career, has earned him his massive fortune.
8. Selena Gomez
Net worth: $1.19 billion
Selena Gomez is more than just a pop star and actress, she is a brand. While her Disney origins laid the foundation for her success, Gomez built an entire empire through acting, producing, and, of course, her very popular beauty brand, Rare Beauty, for which she is a majority stakeholder.
9. Beyoncé
Net worth: $1.13 billion
It’s no surprise at all that Queen Bey holds one of the spots as one of the richest musicians in the world. With 35 Grammys under her belt, she has won more Grammys than any other artist in history and continues to make music to this day! Of course, beyond her music ventures, she credits her success to her business ventures, such as her Ivy Park clothing line.
10. Bono
Net worth: $1.04 billion
Only 2 rockstars made the top ten list of the wealthiest celebrities. Bono has been busy over the last few decades. Not only has he been the frontman of one of the most popular rock bands ever, U2, but he also has his hand in several business dealings. While he certainly gets a lot of income from U2 royalties, his primary income comes from his investments in real estate, stocks, and entertainment.
