Music analytics service Chartmetric has released their semi-annual report on music industry trends, and is reflecting on one of the most turbulent periods in the industry’s recent history.
TikTok, of course, looms large in their analysis, and the report points out both the importance of the platform as a discovery mechanism, but also that TikTok is “far from a music consumption platform.”
If TikTok is the point of discovery and virality, then long-form consumption of trending songs takes place elsewhere. Top trending TikTok song, Conkarah’s Banana (feat. Shaggy) [DJ Fle – Minisiren Remix] had 25 million posts in the first six months of 2020, which translated into 87 million listens on Spotify and a combined 31 million views on Youtube. But that doesn’t mean TikTok users then flock by default to follow the artist on other platforms. On Spotify, Conkarah had a (very respectable) 57,105 followers by the end of June.
The industry, it notes, is only just starting to figure out how to best use TikTok, and its high impact will surely continue in the short term. For now, it’s the starting point for many artist teams to create excitement around a song. Extending interest around the artist across platforms is a separate challenge, and suggests a compartmentalised approach to artist growth.
But tastes and consumption habits change quickly (insert obligatory MySpace reference here) and that extends to genre too. Rock music is looking a bit green around the gills, with Chartmetric noting that “rock artists are virtually non-existent in terms of top growth percentages,” on the platforms they look at.
Those looking to the long-term future may spot an opportunity here: rock music hasn’t become bad overnight, and streaming catalogues are full of classic songs – so how can it be reinvigorated for today’s audience? Viral TikTok videos featuring rock music may require some creative thinking.
Some of the data points are a fascinating insight into how success in the modern music industry happens: you may have suspected beabadoobee was set for bigger things back in January when she had 1.5 million monthly listeners, but would you have gambled on 1,932% growth to just under 30 million in June? And would you have guessed that the most-synced track on TV would be The Who’s 42-year old Who Are You, getting twice as many syncs as Lizzo’s Juice?
Read the full Chartmetric report here.
Image by I_#39_m friday / Shutterstock.com
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