Blog: Music

Read our latest daily deep dives, hot takes, and exciting updates about the entertainment world. Check out the latest insight from your favourite analyst, or search by coverage areas - music, entertainment and fandom, creator economy and social.

How KPop Demon Hunters cracked the fandom code

Cover image for How KPop Demon Hunters cracked the fandom code

Olivia Jones

4 Sep 2025

KPop Demon Hunters has taken the world by storm. With 266 million all-time views (at time of writing), it is currently Netflix's most-watched film ever . That’s not to mention the success of its soundtrack – four songs from the film are in the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 , with breakout hit “Gold...

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The unflattening of streaming

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Mark Mulligan

21 Aug 2025

Business Strategy

This post builds on our January 2025 post ‘The unflattening of music’ which itself built on two previous pieces (you can find links to both in that post). Industries arrive at pivot points when an accumulation of fissures coalesce into one big crack.

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More than a lineup: The importance of bold curation

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Laura Fisher

14 Aug 2025

Business Strategy

Have you noticed how many festival lineups this summer feature the same handful of artists? I have, and, crucially, fans are noticing it too. Where festival billings once offered a window into a distinctive scene, today’s lineups are merging into a wave of homogenised big-name experiences.

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Some artists are leaving Spotify (again). Here’s what’s different now

Cover image for Some artists are leaving Spotify (again). Here’s what’s different now

Tatiana Cirisano

7 Aug 2025

Product Strategy

Over the past few weeks, a growing list of indie bands have decided to leave Spotify, the most prominent being Deerhoof and King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard (a partial list has been compiled by Fader ).

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What is the value of a stream in 2025?

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Olivia Jones

31 Jul 2025

Product Strategy

Streaming Music

More parties than ever are becoming frustrated with streaming. For evenmany successful artists, streaming is a minority income stream, as fandom-related endeavours like live performances, merchandise, and brand deals prove to be more lucrative.

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Why Drake’s ‘Which One’ single is not a TikTok-first track

Cover image for Why Drake’s ‘Which One’ single is not a TikTok-first track

Hanna Kahlert

29 Jul 2025

Drake’s new single ‘Which One’, featuring Central Cee dropped on July 25, 2025 –not abnormal. Less normal: he launched it with no warning halfway through a 41-minute episode of Iceman , a YouTube series he is streaming in advance of his album of the same name.

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Why fandom’s ‘more is more’ era could backfire

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Olivia Jones

9 Jul 2025

Marketing Strategy

‘Less is more’ has long been a pillar of entertainment marketing strategy, promoting the importance of quality over quantity. However, in the past decade, the new phrase has effectively become “more is more” as all forms of entertainment push to release as much content as possible, as often ...

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MIDiA Research 2025-2032 global music forecasts | Recalibration

Cover image for MIDiA Research 2025-2032 global music forecasts | Recalibration

Mark Mulligan

1 Jul 2025

Business Strategy

We are pleased to announce the release of MIDiA’s annual music forecasts report. This is always a labour of love and takes a bit longer than some other entities’ forecasts as our approach is more Etsy than Amazon, with every single line of data (and there are thousands of them) being hand crafte...

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Streaming is both retail and radio – it shouldn’t be

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Mark Mulligan

26 Jun 2025

Business Strategy

In a brutally simplified view of the past, the recorded music industry had two lanes: retail and radio. Piracy killed retail. Streaming killed piracy, then went on to, if not kill, then seriously maim radio.

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Why 'Global South' is a limiting label for the music industry

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Laura Fisher

20 Jun 2025

Business Strategy

At MIDiA, we have started critically reassessing the use of the term‘ Global South’ , a phrase entrenched in industry and geopolitical discourse but increasingly unfit for purpose in today’s complex entertainment landscape.

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The ‘pure’ songwriter is disappearing – and it’s everyone’s problem

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Tatiana Cirisano

19 Jun 2025

The National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) annual meeting is known for making headlines. At last year’s event, CEO David Israelite used his state-of-the-union speech to announce a formal complaint against Spotify’s audiobook bundling, lodged with the Federal Trade Commission.

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Why HYBE expanding into China is a bigger deal than you think

Cover image for Why HYBE expanding into China is a bigger deal than you think

Olivia Jones

17 Jun 2025

Business Strategy

Music streaming

Korean and Chinese labels have been a hot topic in the news lately. First, HYBE sold its entire 9.38% stake in fellow South Korean entertainment company SM Entertainment to Chinese music streaming giant Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) for approximately $177 million USD (per Music Business Worldwid...

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MIDiA Music Creator Survey 2025

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Mark Mulligan

16 Jun 2025

Audience Insight

It is that time of the year again: the annual MIDiA Music Creator Survey is here. Every year, we field this survey to take the pulse of music creators globally, diving into topics such as career aspirations, services and tools used, challenges and hurdles faced, and much more.

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Live isn’t dead, it just needs a WhatsApp group: why gatekeeping is due for a comeback

Cover image for Live isn’t dead, it just needs a WhatsApp group: why gatekeeping is due for a comeback

Hanna Kahlert

12 Jun 2025

Cultural trends

The live scene is, allegedly, in an uphill battle. Festivals face cancellations, travel costs are rising, and grassroots venues are struggling. Success stories like the ‘Eras’ tour and the Oasis reunion boosted year-on-year stats within the industry, but is this a sign of long-term growth or mer...

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Welcome to entertainment’s ‘Mad Max’ era. Here’s where it leads

Cover image for Welcome to entertainment’s ‘Mad Max’ era. Here’s where it leads

Tatiana Cirisano

11 Jun 2025

Business Strategy

Recall the opening scene of Mad Max: Fury Road: a brutal desert, where survival hinges on speed, strategy, and access to precious resources. Water and gasoline are everything in this dystopia, and there is never enough to go around.

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What Western DSPs can learn from Tencent Music’s SVIP Tier

Cover image for What Western DSPs can learn from Tencent Music’s SVIP Tier

Olivia Jones

29 May 2025

Business Strategy

Music streaming

Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) has had a lucrative Q1 2025, with Super VIP (SVIP) subscriptions driving revenue growth. According to the company’s earnings report, music subscription revenue grew 16.

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20 years ago, labels targeted fandom. Will it work the second time around?

Cover image for 20 years ago, labels targeted fandom. Will it work the second time around?

Tatiana Cirisano

27 May 2025

Business Strategy

Music streaming

The New York Times headline “ The New Deal: Band As Brand ” would not look out of place in today’s pages. In the article, the writer explores how record labels are responding to a need to diversify revenue streams by seeking to monetise fandom, via expanded rights deals.

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Culture always starts as grassroots: The rise of bardcore raves

Cover image for Culture always starts as grassroots: The rise of bardcore raves

Hanna Kahlert

22 May 2025

Cultural trends

The entertainment industry is facing a cultural crisis. Demands for more , faster to feed the algorithms are undermining longevity and impact. Songs fade quickly, while films fail to fill cinemas. If much of current mainstream culture is nostalgia and clickbait, what will be the legacy that defines ...

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Built for the split: how Create Music Group is positioning itself for a bifurcated industry

Cover image for Built for the split: how Create Music Group is positioning itself for a bifurcated industry

Tatiana Cirisano

15 May 2025

Business Strategy

The music industry is entering a new phase – less a fork in the road, than a slow but steady divergence . On one path sits the traditional record label model, which monetises music rights via scale of streams.

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The paradox of scale and success: What music can learn from gin distilleries

Cover image for The paradox of scale and success: What music can learn from gin distilleries

Hanna Kahlert

14 May 2025

Business Strategy

The digital world is becoming less reliable. Platforms are flooded with AI content ranging from banal, to amusing, to concerningly incorrect . Advertising crowds the feed alongside creators desperately trying to sell something: themselves, a lifestyle, products, businesses.

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