The music industry has evolved tremendously, and making it as a new artist is quite challenging, even though the demand for new musical creations is increasing daily. As audio streaming services such as Spotify dominate the music industry, and as music becomes increasingly commercialized and regarded more as a product than a creative means of expression, how can artists survive and evolve in their careers?
Music has been a part of people’s lives since ancient times and has always represented a way of expressing emotions, frustrations, and experiences in a creative, original manner. The complexity of a musical piece is intriguing because it involves a process of blending different instruments and vocal techniques with lyrical creativity, components that contribute to making a song an instant hit.
However, the most crucial aspect of music making has always been bringing people together. If someone doesn’t quite understand the message of a song but enjoys how it sounds -or vice versa- people can form connections based on these specific preferences. Who wouldn’t want to share the experience of being a fan of a band or artist with another person?
What makes music so great in today’s world?
Nowadays, music has become so versatile and adaptive that it can cater to even the most demanding tastes. Do you enjoy genres such as rock, classical, pop, or indie? You can find plenty of mainstream or underground artists or bands that suit your preferences. Today’s music has evolved so much that we now have sub-genres or combinations between genres. People even listen to songs that aren’t in their native language or English.
The best example is K-pop, a genre that began as a national trend back in South Korea and later expanded globally, attracting millions of fans around the world. This genre has proved that not all music needs to be translated to be fully appreciated. You simply enjoy the instrumental or the way the artist sings the lyrics. On another note, if you are a person who listens to music for the message, with the technological advances we have today, song lyrics can be translated almost instantly after release, allowing people to search for translations online or reach out to natives who speak the song’s language.
This proves that a person can “feel” a song without having to translate it because music is about relatability. For example, someone might link a pop song to an internet meme, while another might associate it with a feeling of nostalgia because they listened to that song at some point in their childhood. Music is also about appreciating the melody, rhythm, and harmony of a song, elements that create its musicality.
Music as a form of expression and social change
Moreover, music has shaped society and has proven itself to be an instrument for expressing freedom and boosting morale. A great example of songs that lift the spirits in tough times is the ones soldiers sing to toughen up and muster courage for battle. Another good example is songs with powerful, anti-system lyrics, meant to awaken general consciousness and to shed light on collective problems. For instance, the song “Another Brick in the Wall, Part. 2” by Pink Floyd reflects on the abusive school system in post-WW2 Britain.
Another example is the song “This is America” by Childish Gambino, which raises awareness about the racism, gun violence, and political disillusionment that happens in the United States. It is a powerful song combined with meaningful imagery in its music video, representing the Charleston church shooting.
How does music-evoked nostalgia benefit us?
Returning to the aforementioned nostalgia, a series of studies conducted by Routledge et al. in 2011 proved that nostalgia and social connectedness are linked. By human nature, we are inclined to seek and surround ourselves with nostalgia-inducing things, and music is a great way to do so, but it can also be a gateway to social bonds. According to the study, nostalgia is shown to improve mood, provide existential meaning, and increase positive self-regard. Another study has indicated that nostalgia enhances the desire to live, everyday well-being and psychological resilience.
Music-evoked nostalgia is no different, according to a study by Janata et al. from 2007, which examined participants’ emotional responses by playing songs derived from the Billboard Top 100 Pop and R&B song lists. The study utilised an inventory of 1,515 popular music excerpts, from which participants listened to 30 random songs. The tracks chosen for the study were those that were on the charts when the participants were between 7 to 19 years old. After the listening session, participants received a list of 34 emotion words from which they had to choose the ones that were the most relatable during the session, and the third emotional response was nostalgia, preceded by “happy” and “youthful”.
Are streaming services treating their artists right?
With the emergence of smartphones and social platforms, anyone could express themselves more openly, and their opinions or videos would reach more people than ever. This was and still is a great opportunity, as more and more artists are being recognized by the public or recruited by record labels because of the talent they showcase online. One famous example is Canadian singer Shawn Mendes, who was discovered through the video-sharing platform Vine back in 2013, where he used to post song covers.
One notable detail is that in the early 2000s, audio streaming services were just starting to emerge, and artists weren’t as dependent on them as they are now. With the appearance of platforms such as Spotify and iTunes, people began to “migrate” to them for being more accessible, skipping the hassle of buying CDs and downloading songs. Now, audio streaming platforms dominate the music industry; most artists use one or more to share their creative work. Nowadays, if we look at the average payout per stream, which isn’t substantial, we can see that even the artists from major labels don’t have a significant income, unless they surpass the 1 million streams mark (for 1 million streams, an artist can earn between $3,000 and $5,000).
Even well-known artists don’t rely on streaming platforms as their main source of income, as most also sell merchandise, earn through physical sales, and hold concerts or go on tours. Another method that has been proven efficient over the years is the association of an artist with a brand, in which the artist serves as an ambassador. This way, the brand gains more recognition, and the artist becomes more popular. One well-known example is how Beyoncé became a brand ambassador for Pepsi back in 2002. After a partnership that lasted a decade, the world-renowned female singer became the brand’s global ambassador in 2012.
How much do small artists earn?
As we approach the main theme of this article, one question remains: If even the big artists are struggling in the music industry, how profitable is it to become a musician and start from scratch as an independent artist or affiliate yourself with an indie label? The main ingredient for starting as an artist is gaining a lot of recognition and constantly promoting your songs on multiple platforms. This isn’t all, though. In this era of fast-paced trends and fleeting recognition, music has become an industry more than ever, rather than merely representing one of the many creative expressions of humanity.
One of the fundamental aspects of being an artist is developing a strong and loyal fanbase, composed of people who listen to you regularly, to generate revenue from streams. For example, Tidal is the streaming service that pays its artists the most per stream ($0.01284), followed by Apple Music ($0.008), Amazon Music, Spotify, YouTube Music, Pandora and Deezer, the latter of which pays only $0.0011 per stream. While it’s good to maintain an optimistic approach, you must be realistic and remember that you won’t be able to amass a fortune overnight, as delightfully attractive as this concept may sound.
How are artists from the European scene evolving in the music industry?
Several European countries made their contribution to the music scene acknowledged, such as Germany, France, Finland, The Netherlands, Sweden and many more. Unfortunately, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry report for the year 2024 titled “Music in the EU 2024”, “In 2023, recorded music revenues in the EU grew by 8.7% to a total of €5.2 billion. But its growth rate is significantly below other regions and markets – China grew by 25.9% and Mexico by 18.2% – and Europe lagged behind the global growth rate of 10.2%”. This shows us that the European artists have a lower grade of recognition as opposed to other countries. Also, American music has always been a fan favorite, especially because it’s the first international language, so more people are able to understand it. But why aren’t European artists getting the same recognition?
According to a report made by the European Commission, we find out that the European music industry, although it is generating over €25 billion annually, has trouble becoming a lead in global markets. So, European music is not lacking good bands or artists, as some people on the Internet seem to believe. On the contrary, from the same report, we find out that in 2019, 60% of the winners at the Grammy Awards consisted of European artists.
The actual problem is the lack of linguistic diversity among Europeans because the same report has stated that the percent of the European citizens who can speak English as their first language is 12%, making the lack of language variety a real obstacle for European artists who try to enter non-English speaking markets. Another obstacle the industry faces is the insufficient collaboration among member nations. Eventually, the opportunities for expansion and visibility on the global stage are reduced significantly because European artists frequently concentrate on their local markets.
The information from Statista.com also mentions that once with the digitalization of media, physical sales of albums in Europe have declined significantly over the next 20 years, but it also mentions that “Digital music revenues in the United Kingdom are estimated at over 1.7 billion euros, 1.4 billion euros in Germany, and over half a billion euros in France”. While there is room for improvement, the European music scene is still missing some vital elements, but through engagement with younger audiences and by overcoming the language barriers and other obstacles, it has a lot to gain in the long run.
