The BPI has reported that 2024 was a ‘milestone year’ for UK recorded music, with analysis based on Official Charts data revealing new heights for streaming, record-breaking success for women and a return to growth for physical music sales.
The BPI, the representative voice for the UK’s record companies and label businesses, revealed that UK recorded music consumption across sales and streams rose 9.7% last year to 200.5 million albums (or their equivalent) – marking a decade of uninterrupted growth.
This growth was driven by an 11.0% rise in the streaming market, with 199.6 billion audio streams over the course of the year, contributing to a market where streaming now makes up 88.8% of consumption (2023: 87.7%).
In May, the Official Charts Company recorded over four billion audio streams in a single week for the first time ever.
With streaming consumption having more than doubled in six years, British recorded music has continued to experience a rapidly-growing streaming market. In the five years between 2018 and 2023, UK record labels invested well over £2 billion in marketing and A&R, while more artists are benefitting from streaming than ever before. Success in streaming for artists is now measured in the hundreds of millions and even billions, with more active than ever before and well over 10,000 surpassing the threshold of one million audio streams in the UK alone over the course of 2023.
Notable drivers of the overall market growth in 2024 included a record-breaking performance by women across not just singles, as in 2023, but albums also; continued chart success for British acts; and a steadily growing demand for album releases on physical formats.
However, in spite of UK recorded music hitting new heights in 2024, British music’s leading position is being challenged by rapidly intensifying global competition, while a new government consultation on AI and copyright risks taking value away from British artists and the rightsholders that support them in a way that could severely undermine the UK music industry and its prospects and Britain’s cultural power.
“We’ve seen another strong year benefitting from streaming and driven by era-defining women, said Dr. Jo Twist OBE, BPI chief executive. “It’s clear that, thanks to strong investment in diverse artists by record labels, paired with a world-class rights framework, British music has huge potential for continued growth and global impact.
“From Coldplay, and Charli XCX, to The Last Dinner Party, and Myles Smith, there were plenty of examples of UK music success stories in 2024. But there are also rising challenges for domestic talent in a rapidly changing and hyper-competitive global music economy.
“The UK’s creative output and human creativity is being placed at risk by proposed changes to British copyright law, which would allow international tech giants to train AI models on artists’ work without payment or permission, and would be the wrong way to realise the exciting potential of AI. Meanwhile, streaming fraud is also a rising concern.
“By meeting the growing global challenge head-on, tackling challenges around AI, copyright and streaming fraud, and encouraging consumers towards viable models, like paid streaming subscriptions, we can help to ensure that the value of British music is protected and that our industry can continue to grow and flourish at home and around the world.
“The UK remains a world music power, but this status cannot be taken for granted: we need a supportive policy environment that puts the focus on human artistry and enables continued investment in the next generation of British talent.”