The music industry is one of the most relevant sectors today since music has become a significant part of man’s necessities. Music is fastly becoming more popular, cheaper, readily available, and widely integrated due to its pleasantness to the ears, unlike noise(read reviews about how to adjust your noise and have extended run time with an adequate electricity supply). That’s not all; the music industry has also recorded a significant five years growth in revenue as the total music industry revenue grew from $14.2b in 2014 to $19.1b in 2019.

As the music revenue grows, new and upcoming trends continue to change and perhaps reform how the music industry works. Music producers, artists, songwriters, etc., and every other individual involved in the music industry would do themselves lots of good by getting acquainted with these dynamic music industry changes and playing their cards accordingly. Here are the five newest trends that continue to revolve around the music industry.

Technological Revolution of the Music Industry

According to the International Federation of the phonographic industry, digital music revenue accounts for more than 56.1% of the global record of income after successfully increasing by 22.9% in 2019. And at the end of 2019, about three hundred and forty-one million users of subscription streaming accounts exist globally in forty-two markets, making digital revenue account for more than half of the total music revenue record worldwide. Rapid and extensive advent in technology has positively influenced music promotion and consumption. Streaming of music now seems to be the new norm, and artists can easily upload their songs on popular streaming platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, Soundcloud, Google play music, etc. Statista reports that as of early 2018, the most famous music streaming platform is Apple music with an impressive 49.5 users, closely followed by Spotify, with 47.7m users.

The use of CDs and DVDs is fast becoming extinct, and live-streaming sites like Twitch and mixer are filling the gap. Music producers and artists can connect with fans, engage, and stay associated with them. Millions of songs are now available on Spotify and other streaming platforms, allowing fans to choose their favorite songs from different music. According to the music business worldwide, the music streaming revenue is expected to grow by over $1b in the United States, irrespective of unfavorable circumstances.

Need for Focus on Alternative Income Sources

In the 1980s and 1990s, musicians made substantial amounts of money from their music, and they can afford to make music their primary source of income. However, as time unfolds in the current century, artists and music producers would have to shift their focus from music to the only source of income as music has become cheaper and easily accessible, unlike those days. Total reliances on the constant old revenue streams don’t yield much income, and new artists are rising daily, leading to high competition. Upcoming artists might have to concentrate on other alternatives such as touring, merch sales, licensing, and other more profitable options.

The decrease in Song’s Length

Many popular songs that are currently in the limelight are relatively shorter in track length, and this decrease is becoming more progressive. The first forty songs’ average track length in 2019 was three minutes and seven seconds, thirty seconds less than the year prior. This reduction in the song length is mainly due to streaming and playlists’ discovery, making traditional to become a thing of the past to reduce their probabilities of being excluded among myriads of other artists. Moreover, artists and music producers are now embracing albums’ use to produce their music, reducing each song’s average length.

Indie Labels Are Gaining More Grounds

Another new trend that’s unfolding in the music industry is the increasing popularity of indie music labels with a shifting of power from the major contemporary brands as they continually lose hold of the music industry. The Independent music industry has been attracting more attention from major artists and their respective fans as they’ve released their music rapidly, especially in 2020. And we believe that soon enough, the major labels would begin to learn and implement the indie labels tactics due to their increasing popularity. The little budget required, little or no requirement of permission for production, the unique style, and the entertaining effects of indie music have also contributed to its fame.

Use of Social Media

From the days of the erstwhile social networking company, myspace, social media has been a fundamental tool in the marketing and digital engagement of music. In this 21st century, Social media is also a significant part of the internet in this technological age, affecting the music industry. Artists are now using the power of social media to promote their songs and keep their fans updated about their latest news and experiences like their album release date, concert dates, and what have you. Tiktok and Instagram are currently compelling social tools artists use to promote their songs in this 21st century.

Conclusion

Considering the above recent trends in the music industry, we can affirm that the music industry’s future is bright. Music might become much cheaper and widely available with the influx of new artists. So far, music has been the uniting factor that has continued to bring the works together irrespective of geographical and ethical differences.