The huge image: Spotify paid out a mixed $7+ billion to music rights holders in 2021. It’s the biggest sum paid by one retailer to the music business in a single yr ever – even in the course of the peak of the digital obtain and compact disc period – and greater than double what the corporate paid in 2017 ($3.3 billion).
The report determine pushes Spotify’s whole payout since founding to $30 billion.
Last yr was additionally the primary wherein Spotify had greater than 1,000 artists generate at the very least $1 million in income by way of the service. Of these, 450 generated greater than $2 million and 130 artists exceeded the $5 million mark, representing will increase of 110 p.c and 160 p.c, respectively, during the last 5 years.
What’s extra, Spotify had over 52,000 artists that generated at the very least $10,000 final yr. More than a 3rd stay in nations outdoors of the highest 10 music markets and 28 p.c self-distribute on Spotify.
Need additional proof that the business is much less concentrated than it as soon as was? During the CD period, 1 / 4 of all gross sales went to the highest 50 artists. Last yr on Spotify, solely 12 p.c of income got here from the highest 50 artists.
Keep in thoughts that these figures are simply Spotify’s, and do not account for earnings generated from rival streaming companies and different types of distribution. It’s very doable that many artists are making multiples of what’s portrayed in Spotify’s outcomes.
Spotify founder and CEO Daniel Ek acknowledged that it is troublesome to make it in music. “I get that. But the figures we’re sharing present that Spotify is bettering on the music business of the previous, and increasingly artists are capable of stand out within the streaming period,” he added.
Zooming out, we see that the three main labels introduced in over $25 billion in income in 2021, with $12.5 billion of it coming from streaming alone.
Image credit score Burst