US Recorded Music Revenue Surpassed $12B in 2020: RIAA (Billboard)
Economic downturn brought on by the pandemic couldn't stop the U.S. music industry from its fifth consecutive year of growth as revenue increased 9.2% to $12.15 billion in 2020 from the prior year's $11.13 billion total.
Spotify to Launch in 85 New Markets (Variety)
Spotify unveiled plans to launch in 85 new markets over the next few days, areas that represent more than 1 billion potential new listeners.
Who Really Wrote Your Favorite Song? It’s Complicated (WSJ)
The music-catalog buying frenzy benefits anyone credited with writing a hit song. Yet who gets that credit is complicated. In 2020, the average number of writers on a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart was 5.5 writers. That’s up from 2.1 writers in 1990.
