Our Top Takeaways from the “MRC Billboard Year End Report U.S. 2021”
5 min
Hey friends, Anusha here!
At the beginning of each year, Billboard Magazine, in partnership with MRC Entertainment, releases a report on music trends, music consumption data from the previous calendar year, and projections on how the upcoming year will go. We did some research to make sure RRA stays up with current music trends, and we thought it would be helpful to share! There are some valuable nuggets in here that are relevant to note as an artist, producer, music manager, A&R, or music professional. We condensed this 52 page report to share the highlights we felt were 1) intriguing 2) insightful and 3) interesting.
Keep reading to see our top takeaways from their 2021 report! While we share some of our highlights below, we highly encourage you to read the full report and see if there is anything else that is pertinent to you. Let us know your thoughts and happy reading!
Disclaimer: All facts, figures, and language are derived from Billboard’s MRC Year End Report. Ravi Ray Audio does not claim any of the data below as their own. Please find the full report here:
https://mrcdatareports.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/MRC_YEAREND_2021_US_FNL.pdf
Music Consumption is Growing
Music consumption grew by 11.3% (decelerated from 11.6% in 2020)
On-demand audio consumption grew by 12.6% (decelerated from 17% in 2020)
From 2020 to 2021, these metrics show how there is a growing market for music and there has never been a better time to release your music into the world!
If you need help pushing your records to the finish line with some post-production, RRA can help with that. Learn more about our music mixing services here.
2. Vinyl & CD is Growing, but Streaming is Still Superior
Vinyl surpassed CDs as most sold physical format since 1991
Physical album sales in general are up by 20%
95.5% of Americans use DSP (digital streaming platforms) for music
Vinyl and CD sales are up! Listeners and consumers are more invested in participating in an artist’s world. While most discover artists through social media and DSP’s, once they find an artist the love and would like to support, they are more willing to spend money to buy into the world that artist has built. Especially since the royalties from streaming are challenging, physical albums or singles in the form of vinyl or CD offers a great product to invest in (keep in mind that this lives in the mastering phase of post-production).
With this being said, DSP is still king in the USA, but the revival of physical music is not something to ignore. Our advice: try asking your audience if they’d be interested in purchasing a physical copy of your music through Instagram stories. You may be surprised, let us know what you find!
3. Podcast Consumption is Growing Too
33% of Americans consume podcasts
Podcast consumption went up by 2% in 2021
120 million podcast listeners in the US as of 2021; projected to surpass 160 million in 2023
The industry for podcasts is very strong and appetite continues to grow. People are actively engaging in podcast listening as a part of their daily routines and the format offers an alternative to listening to music or watching sports (some of the biggest pass time activities in the country). Listeners form attachments and invest in the people sharing their stories in these podcasts. If you’re currently hosting a podcast (or planning to start one), RRA also offers post-production services for podcasts - learn more here!
4. NFT’s and Web3 are Changing the Music Industry
27% of music fans are more likely to buy NFT than they were in 2020
Web3 is expected to revolutionize the way artists own their data and how they can interact with their fans in the future
We’ve all been hearing the buzz words “NFT” and “Web3” for a while now. These concepts are definitely here to stay and will continue to grow quickly in the space of music, art, personal data, and society broadly over the next few years. RRA is keeping a close eye on this and we will be expanding on these topics on this blog in April/May, so sign up for our mailing list to stay posted when they drop.
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As an artist and songwriter myself, I found this data on music consumption and trends both very informational and inspirational. Especially as an independent artist, I think it shows that the vast amount of creative entrepreneurship that exploded in the world in 2020 and 2021 have laid the groundwork for us to continue to build, grow, and take up space in the music industry for the upcoming years. What is clear to me after reading this report is that people around the world crave entertainment, community, and investing in art. And the way they consume that art is diversifying. I as an artist now have many options to find which trends I want to test and deliver on for myself.
Additionally, as someone building a network in the music industry, it is very important to know that these reports are shared because you better believe every major label, publishing company, music news organization, A&R is keeping up with this - and information is power. So even knowing about these facts and figures empowers me to stay sharp and build on these conversations with the people who I am in business with everyday - and now you do too! I highly encourage each of you to read through the full report (link again below) and see if there are any other points that felt pertinent or surprising to you.
Until next time!
~ Anusha Savi (Anusha Suresh)
Disclaimer: All facts, figures, and language are derived from Billboard’s MRC Year End Report. Ravi Ray Audio does not claim any of the data below as their own. Please find the full report here:
https://mrcdatareports.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/MRC_YEAREND_2021_US_FNL.pdf
