Key Highlights
- Spotify has unveiled its annual “Loud and Clear” report, providing a detailed overview of artist performance on the platform.
- The streaming service announced it disbursed over $10 billion to the global music industry in 2024, representing the highest single-year payout from any retailer in music history.
- This year’s report indicates that Canadian artists earned approximately CAD $460 million in Spotify royalties within the last year.
- Spotify reveals that Canadian music revenue surged by 129% over the past five years, reaching CAD $909 million in 2024 alone.
Recently, Spotify published its annual “Loud and Clear” report, which reviews the economics of music streaming each year. For 2024, Spotify reported that it paid out over $10 billion to the music industry globally, marking an unprecedented single-year payout.
The report highlights that nearly 1,500 artists earned over $1 million solely from Spotify in 2024, with 80% of these artists lacking a presence on the Spotify Global Daily Top 50 chart. This illustrates that even without a mainstream hit, artists can generate substantial revenue.
Interestingly, Canadian artists appear to be thriving on the global stage, earning CAD $460 million in Spotify royalties in 2024—almost double what they earned since 2019. Spotify attributes this success to Canadian global icons like The Weeknd, Justin Bieber, and Céline Dion, who have laid a robust foundation for emerging artists.
“That’s not just about streams; it reflects sustainable careers being developed in studios, basements, and tour vans from Vancouver to Halifax,” noted Spotify.
Regarding revenue generation, Spotify emphasizes that 94% of the earnings by Canadian artists on the platform came from outside Canada.
This indicates that Canada has emerged as one of the leading music exporters in the world, with Canadian music being streamed in cities like Jakarta, Osaka, Melbourne, London, São Paulo, Berlin, Mexico City, and Seoul.
As a bilingual nation, Canada’s French music sector saw a 15% increase in global Spotify royalties over the past year.
For example, “Québécois artist Patrick Watson’s ‘Je te laisserai des mots’ emerged as the most popular francophone track on Spotify globally in 2024, being the first French-language track to surpass 1 billion streams,” the report indicated.
In addition, Spotify reports that Canadian women have played a pivotal role in music creation, with their global streams on the platform doubling since 2020. As of 2024, “40% of Canadian artists earning over CAD $1 million on Spotify were women or came from groups with both male and female members.”
“This is what Canada sounds like—diverse, digital, and thriving not only domestically but on the global stage. The data clearly highlights the essential role of exports in sustaining the overall health of Canada’s music industry,” stated Xenia Manning, director of Global Music Policy at Spotify.