Artists Reports from MIDiA Research

Label services vendor landscape
Rise of the atomised label

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Olivia Jones

May 2025

Labels

The label services sector has emerged as a way for independent labels to provide artists with best-in-class tools without having to build those tools in-house. This shift towards atomised labels has created...

Music discovery snapshot Q4 2024
Breaking through the noise

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Olivia Jones

March 2025

Streaming

Marketing

Artists

Breaking through the noise is more important than ever for artists. As passive listening grows, facilitating active discovery has become a challenge. On top of this, the way consumers discover music is...

The superfans of music superstars
Identity and cut-through

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Olivia Jones

February 2025

Labels

US

Artists

Fandom is becoming the music industry’s golden goose, with labels focusing on building and monetising superfan bases for their top artists. However, superfan behaviours are changing in response to oversaturation...

Music’s podcast potential
Focus on branding over discovery

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Annie Langston

August 2023

Labels

Streaming

Artists

In this hyper-fragmented entertainment consumption space, artists and labels must use every tool available to break out above the noise. Artists must diversify their content to not only promote their music,...

Kill the campaign
Music marketing needs branding, not direct response

Mark Mulligan and Tatiana Cirisano

February 2023

Streaming

Spotify

Marketing

The debate over a new streaming royalties regime is capturing attention, but economics will not fix the underlying paradigm shifts that are the true cause for streaming’s problems: there is not enough...

Music creator tools forecast
Moving towards a hybrid future

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Mark Mulligan

September 2021

Creators

Apple

Spotify

Once upon a time, music software and hardware were distinct market segments, but now they are increasingly fusing into a network of hybrid creator tools ecosystems. Standalone hardware still has a vibrant...

Creator hubs
Creator tools’ next growth driver

Mark Mulligan and Kriss Thakrar

September 2021

Creators

Spotify

Artists

The emerging competitive dynamic between insurgents and incumbents is the catalyst for an unprecedented period of innovation in the music creator tools space. However, because this dynamic is underpinned...

Addressable creator markets
An opportunity with many layers

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Mark Mulligan

July 2021

Apple

Artists

The music creator tools space is undergoing a change that is simultaneously renaissance and transformation. The creator culture boom has driven an unprecedented degree of investment and investor interest....

Music marketing
Catalogue and song management

Keith Jopling

February 2021

Artists

Independent artists

music marketing

The catalogue race is on Music catalogues are changing hands for serious sums of money. The race to acquire the songwriters’ share is on, and it is speeding up. However, while that race is a sprint,...

Music Product Strategy Re-boot
Time to Monetise Fandom, Not Access

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Mark Mulligan

January 2021

Innovation

Spotify

As streaming reaches maturity in many of the largest music markets and middle-tier artists struggle to make ends meet with the live music hiatus, the time has come for a music product strategy re-boot...

Creator Tools
The Music Industry’s New Top of Funnel

Mark Mulligan

November 2020

Creators

Apple

Music production has traditionally been, at best, an adjacent industry to the recording business, and at worst simply a cost centre. That is now all changing. COVID-19’s disruption catalysed the already-rapid...

Recovery Economics
Music, Games, Live Streams and the Future of Concerts

Mark Mulligan, Karol Severin and Keith Jopling

May 2020

live music

live

Artists

In April 2020 Travis Scott’s Fortnite event pulled in 27 million players. While this was happening, the global artist community was scrambling to plug the income and engagement gap caused by COVID-19’s...

COVID-19
The Self-Isolation Entertainment Boom

Mark Mulligan

April 2020

Free Report

Streaming

Spotify

Artists

Following our first COVID-19 impact report, this report deep dives into how media consumption patterns have changed in the initial weeks of COVID-19 dislocation. While it is crucial to remember that these...

COVID-19
Entertainment and Leisure Industry Impact Assessment

Mark Mulligan

March 2020

Apple

Spotify

Artists

The spread of COVID-19, and the responses of industry and governments alike, is unprecedented. It is, however, the restrictions on movement of people along with the response of consumers and investors...

Independent Artist Survey
Aspirations That Will Reshape an Industry

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Mark Mulligan

January 2020

Artists

DIY

Independent artists

This report presents the findings of MIDiA’s 2019 independent artist survey. Companies and brands mentioned in this report: AWAL, BMG Music Rights, CD Baby, Kobalt, Tunecore, Amuse...

Artist Fandom
The Artist Marketing Playbook Needs Rewriting

Mark Mulligan

July 2019

Spotify

Artists

Taylor Swift

The whole essence of fandom is being turned upside down. An emerging crop of streaming native artists is finding its audience in a much more targeted and efficient way than via traditional music marketing....

Independent Artists
The Music Industry Rewritten

Mark Mulligan

July 2019

Creators

Labels

rhapsody

The rise of independent artists is one of the most important changes to happen to the modern recorded music business. While traditional label models still dominate, ever more artists are pursuing non-traditional...

The Death of the Long Tail
The Superstar Music Economy

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Mark Mulligan

July 2014

music sales

Music revenue

Artists

The 21st century decline in recorded music revenues continues to send shockwaves throughout the music industry and although there are encouraging signs of digital-driven growth, the impact on artists is...

The Superstar Artist Economy
Artist Income and the Top 1%

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Mark Mulligan

July 2014

Music revenue

live music

live

Since the advent of piracy artists have been told that they need not worry about declining music sales because their core business is making money from live and merchandise. At a headline level, macro...

Reports: Artists