artists direct blog by MIDiA Research

Blog: artists direct

The coming long-tail cull

Blog post by Mark Mulligan

8 Nov 2022

When governments plan to introduce controversial new policies, they prepare the ground in advance (dropping hints in speeches, privately briefing journalists, etc.), so that by the time the new policy...

Artists and managers: Help shape the future of artist services

Blog post by Kriss Thakrar

7 Nov 2022

independent artists

artists direct

Music

It has arguably never been harder for artists to break through on social media, streaming, and in the real world. We repeatedly hear how artists and their teams are overextended, burned out and overwhelmed...

Recorded music market shares 2021 – Red letter year

Blog post by Mark Mulligan

18 Mar 2022

Record music market

global music revenues

label trade revenues 2021

We suggested back in 2020, that 2021 was going to be a strong year for the recorded music market. As it turns out, 2021 was the fastest growing year in living memory, with growth across most formats, contrasting...

Artists survey 2022 - MIDiA asks music creators: how will you grow your audiences, earnings and career?

Blog post by Keith Jopling

8 Feb 2022

music streaming

Content Creators

creator tools

As the music industry continues to debate the many pros and cons of ‘the streaming era’ (while enjoying the unprecedented industry growth that it has brought), the spotlight can sometimes move away...

The paradox of small

Blog post by Mark Mulligan

18 Jun 2021

artists direct

independent creators

creator culture

When the history books are written about our current times, the rise of creator culture will likely go down as one of the most impactful paradigm shifts. It is a dynamic that extends far beyond music,...

Gamers: The new frontier of music’s fan-centric growth

Blog post by Karol Severin

13 Apr 2021

artists direct

DIY artists

gamer behavior

Music companies have begun to realise that as their industry has grown, it has also transferred much of its previous fan value into the subscription and song economy. The outbreak of COVID-19 and the subsequent...

The Age of the Creators

Blog post by Hanna Kahlert

17 Feb 2020

artist streaming income

artists direct

Chart Of The Week

For the meek shall inherit the earth… Since early 2019, MIDiA has been publishing findings that we are moving progressively into a market dynamic in which creators are being empowered by technology to...

Spotify Q4 2019: First Signs of the New Spotify

Blog post by Mark Mulligan

5 Feb 2020

artists direct

Spotify

spotify creator tools

Spotify’s Q4 2019 results reflect another strong quarter and a good year for Spotify. Look a bit deeper, however, and there are the first signs of the new company that Spotify is building – and they...

Independent Artists: The Age of Empowerment

Blog post by Mark Mulligan

11 Jul 2019

Amuse

artist careers

Artist survey

MIDiA is proud to announce an exclusive new report in conjunction with Amuse – Independent Artists: The Age of Empowerment . The report is based on a global survey of independent artists that we conducted...

PledgeMusic and Not-So-Glorious Failure

Blog post by Mark Mulligan

10 May 2019

artists direct

Bandcamp

blackberry

Pioneering fan funding platform PledgeMusic is now officially over, having entered administration (i.e. Chapter 11) in the UK reportedly owing its artists around $1 million and with little expectation...

Blog post by Mark Mulligan

26 Oct 2018

artists direct

independent record labels

indie labels

Spotify’s Daniel Ek is betting big on developing a ‘two sided marketplace’ for music . With the company’s market cap on a downward trend despite strong growth metrics , Ek might find himself having...