RIAA Reports New Milestone For 2023 Mid-Year U.S. Recorded Music Revenues

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has released a new report revealing the industry has hit new revenue milestones after a decade of transformation, including data for mid-year 2023 reflecting the ninth consecutive year of growth.

Total revenues grew 9.3% at estimated retail value and marked an all-time, first-half high of $8.4 billion, as paid subscriptions remained the strongest driver, accounting for 78% of streaming revenues.

“This report describes a thriving, growing music ecosystem that continues to reach new heights and shape our culture,” says RIAA Chairman & CEO Mitch Glazier. “And it reflects the creative human genius and hard work of all the artists, songwriters, labels, publishers, and services who make the music happen and meet fans and audiences where they are in today’s forward looking and innovative music community.”

Statistics from the report on streaming reveal it remains the dominant form of music consumption in the U.S., responsible for 84% of total recorded music revenues in the U.S. and growing 10.3% to $7 billion. Paid subscriptions also grew even faster, topping 11% growth over the first half of this year. Over the past five years, the number of people paying for music subscriptions has more than doubled.

Physical formats have now reached their highest level since the first half of 2013, with total revenues up 5% over 2022 at $882 million. Vinyl is also still highly popular, reaching $632 million for the first half of 2023 and accounting for 72% of all physical music sales. The full report is available here.