According to the IMS Business Report 2022, only 1,650 artists make over $65,000 annually from their streaming catalogue. “It has been brutally difficult for artists to make a living from making and playing music,” says Silvia Montello, Association for Electronic Music
Although the true number of this is actually lower when you factor in that a lot of these artists split royalties with collaborators, this number is shockingly low. Proving that it can be extremely hard to earn a substantial yearly earning from music – and streaming services – alone, it isn’t a surprise but it is always jarring to see these numbers. The number has also seen a big rise since 2017 according to the IMS estimates, where back then this number of artists sat at just 740. Two years later, it had hopped up to 1,140 and is currently the highest it has ever been.
Image credit: via IMS Business Report 2022
Luckily, a lot of artists that tour can rely on that as their main source of income, but it can still be struggle for any artist, especially when looking into the numbers that streaming giants such as Spotify pay per stream, and how many streams are realistically needed to earn a decent sum of money.
Producer Yousef stated:
“It is difficult to get a return on it – but I have to do it creatively”
Other industry professionals have also weighed in on this topic, with Mark Lawrence saying:
“You have to work every part of the system to build your earnings: publishing, metadata etc. Linking your accounts in the digital ecosystem so people can find your gigs, buy merch etc. And you have to invest to build up a catalogue for the long term, which is where the money comes from”
You can download the full report here.
Image credit: via Ibiza Spotlight
