State Champ Radio Business News
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Trending on Billboard
HarbourView Equity Partners and Grammy Award-winning artist and producer Hit-Boy have joined forces in an exclusive partnership. Following the conclusion of Hit-Boy’s 18-year publishing agreement with Universal Music Publishing Group, the new alliance finds HarbourView collaborating on forthcoming titles written by Hit-Boy. Transaction terms were not disclosed.
In announcing the news, HarbourView founder and CEO Sherrese Clarke stated, “At HarbourView, we are committed to investing in the creators who shape culture and are actively moving it forward. Hit-Boy’s work has defined a generation of music, blending innovation with impact in a way few others have. We’re honored to partner with him and proud to help preserve, celebrate and continue his extraordinary legacy.”
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“This next chapter of my career is about ownership, being innovative and my creative freedom,” added Hit-Boy. “HarbourView will be a forward-thinking partner and that is exactly what I want when making decisions about my catalog and my future.”
Hit-Boy’s extensive catalog, amassed over nearly 20 years, encompasses collaborations ranging from Kendrick Lamar and Nicki Minaj to Ariana Grande and Doechii. Among the producer’s biggest hits are Jay-Z and Kanye West’s “N***as In Paris,” Travis Scott’s “Sicko Mode” with Drake, Beyoncé’s “Flawless” and the late Nipsey Hussle’s “Racks in the Middle.”
Three-time Grammy winner Hit-Boy also executive produced Nas’ Grammy-winning King’s Disease as well as the rap icon’s Magic Trilogy. His two other Grammy wins were for best rap song (“N***as In Paris”) and best rap performance (for his guest feature alongside Roddy Ricch on Hussle’s “Racks in the Middle”).
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As an artist, Hit-Boy’s most recent album is Goldfish with fellow producer The Alchemist. The project is complemented by a short film directed by Abteen Bagheri and executive produced by Hit-Boy, who also stars in the short with The Alchemist. Others featured in the film include Danny Trejo, Rory Culkin and rappers Big Hit, Conway the Machine and Lefty Gunplay.
HarbourView Equity Partners was established in 2021. Specializing in the sports, media and entertainment arenas, the investment firm’s music portfolio includes artists and producers such as Kelly Clarkson, T-Pain, Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, Luis Fonsi, Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie, Wiz Khalifa and Kane Brown, among others.
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Management collective The Circuit Group has launched Circuit Capital, a platform to acquire and scale music assets and cultural IP. Circuit Capital is being backed by Create Music Group, which is providing Circuit Capital with access to more than $500 million with which to execute its mission.
The fund will invest in catalogs, record labels, publishers and other music-driven ventures with a mission to build long-term sustainable value. Circuit Capital will provide capital to back upcoming projects by artists being managed by The Circuit Group, an initiative that involves back catalog investments and futures funding deals and providing artists with the resources to invest in their own music and careers.
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The Circuit Group launched in October of 2023, bringing together management companies Ayita and Seven20, whose combined rosters include electronic artists Fisher, Chris Lake, deadmau5, Cloonee, Aluna, Ninajirachi and many more. The company launched with the mission to acquire 50% ownership in artists’ IP portfolios and partner with them to build opportunities across verticals, while also offering traditional artist management.
The business was launched by dance industry executive and deadmau5’s longtime manager Dean Wilson and his wife/business partner Jessica Wilson, along with Brett Fischer, David Gray and Harvey Tadman. The Circuit Group team expanded in the summer of 2024 upon announcing seven new hires.
Now, Circuit Capital’s goal is to create a community atmosphere and serve as a home for artists, entrepreneurs and rights-holders who will work with a group of longtime professionals with a deep understanding of and footing in the electronic music industry.
“Our mission is to put culture at the center of everything we do,” The Circuit Group co-founder Harvey Tadman says in a statement. “Too often, the people buying into music don’t understand the world it comes from. We’ve built our careers inside this culture. Circuit Capital is our way of ensuring that when artists decide to sell or scale, they can do it with people who speak the same language and share the same values. We couldn’t imagine a better partner than Create Music Group.”
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Earlier this year, Create Music Group announced that it acquired the deadmau5 catalog, along with the catalog of the electronic producer’s longstanding label, mau5trap.
“We’re excited to announce this unique partnership with Circuit,” says Create Music Group CFO William Smith. “We have been impressed by their relentless focus as managers on partnering with their clients to build assets with substantial, enduring value, as exemplified by the recent deadmau5 transaction. Moving forward, we’re pleased to be backing Circuit’s strategy of investing into the same music catalogs and businesses that they’re helping to grow – in other words, ‘putting their money where their mouths are’ – by providing them with this fund.”
“Our partnership with The Circuit Group represents Create’s continued mission in building the leading technology, infrastructure, and capital platform for artists and entrepreneurs,” says Create Music Group co-founder and CEO Jonathan Strauss. “Circuit has evolved into one of the most respected and trusted management teams in the dance space, with a deep understanding of what artists need to grow, innovate, and create long-term value. Together with Circuit, we’re aligning resources, expertise, and vision to empower music entrepreneurs to build enduring, global businesses.”
Trending on Billboard
Spirit Music’s first catalog, which contains Pete Townshend’s publishing, T. Rex’s publishing catalog and masters, and Ingrid Michaelson’s music assets, might be coming up for sale, sources tell Billboard.
The catalog is currently owned by Northleaf Capital, which acquired it at some point since October 2021, when it provided $500 million in funding to Lyric Capital Group in a deal that was termed a “strategic alliance at the time. Lyric Capital was formed by Jon Singer and Ross Cameron, when they were still executives at Spirit Music, to buy Spirit Music and its catalog from original owner Pegasus Capital in 2018. Spirit Music is now the operational music company of Lyric Capital, and continues to serve as administrator for that catalog.
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According to some sources, Northleaf received an unsolicited bid and, as a fiduciary for the institutional investors who invest in the fund that owns the Spirit catalog, it had to present that offer to the catalog’s shareholders to see if it should explore a sale. It sounds like the shareholders decided to see what the catalog could get on the open market — specifically, whether it could fetch a higher price than the unsolicited bid — because sources say Northleaf has hired Brian Richards and his financial firm Artisan to approach potential suitors to see if they would be willing to make a bid. Sources suggest that Northleaf is seeking $500 million or more.
The catalog coming up for sale was initially assembled by Spirit Music founder Mark Fried, who founded the company in 1995 and left it in 2014. Back then, the catalog included songs by James William Guercio, Graham Nash, and Marilyn and Alan Bergman. The catalog was supplemented by David Renzer, who served as Spirit Music Group CEO from 2014 to 2018 and, during his tenure, acquired the Cal IV Entertainment company and song portfolio, which may be the reason sources say the Spirit Music catalog up for sale has a strong country music presence. Although it’s unclear if the Cal IV catalog is part of the sale, when Spirit acquired it in 2014, its catalog included numerous country hit records, including Faith Hill’s “Breathe,” Keith Urban’s “Stupid Boy,” Tim McGraw’s “Watch The Wind Blow By” and Jason Aldean’s “Big Green Tractor.”
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When Billboard reported on Lyric Capital buying and recapitalizing Spirit Music in 2019, the catalog contained songs from such artists and songwriters as Billy Squier, Charles Mingus, Doc Pomus, Henry Mancini, Lou Christie, Louden Wainwright III, Marshall Tucker Band, Phil Coulter, Boz Scaggs, T Bone Burnett, Frank Rogers, Gregg Wattenberg, David Paich, Tim Hardin, and Richie Cordell, Jonny Coffer, Zach Crowell and James Bay. Again, it’s unclear if these songwriters and their music are included in the catalog up for sale. But at the time Lyric acquired Spirit Music, Billboard reported that the catalog was generating about $21 million in gross profit, or, in music publishing parlance, net publisher’s share, and that the deal supposedly carried a $280 million valuation, which at the time implied a 13.33 times multiple.
When Lyric Capital came into the picture, sources suggested that it eventually became a significant majority owner of the first Spirit catalog, owning upwards of 95% or even more of the catalog, although sources suggest Lyric might still own a tiny sliver of it, in addition to retaining its role as the administrator following the Northleaf deal. Lyric Capital subsequently offloaded the backroom administrative functions to Downtown Music Publishing in 2024, although Lyric’s Spirit Music operation remains the official administrator and marketing force for the catalog’s music.
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Currently, sources suggest that the catalog is generating about $30 million gross profit, split between about 85% in net publisher’s share and about 15% in net label share from either owned recorded masters or recorded master royalties. If $500 million or more becomes the asking price for the catalog, at that amount of gross profit, that would imply Northleaf is seeking at least a 16.7 times multiple. However, just because Northleaf appears to be exploring a sale, that doesn’t mean it will sell. It will come down to what price the catalog can command from suitors and if the high bidder’s offer presents enough profit for the seller.
Beyond the first Spirit music catalog, Lyric Capital and its Spirit Music publishing arm remain active music investors, acquiring and managing music catalogs. In 2023, Lyric Capital raised $800 million to pursue further acquisitions. Recently, the Nashville arm of Spirit Music acquired select songs from singer-songwriter Hardy’s music publishing catalog while also signing the artist to a go-forward exclusive writing agreement with the firm.
Northleaf, Artisan and Spirit Music didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Trending on Billboard
As some once high-flying streaming stocks limp toward the end of the year, music stocks have fallen far below their all-time high.
Tencent Music Entertainment (TME) dropped 11.0% to $18.93 after the company reported its third-quarter earnings on Tuesday (Nov. 11). TME reported strong growth in online music of 27.2% and music subscriptions of 17.2%. It’s not clear why investors reacted negatively, but it’s possible they have concerns that TME’s margins will suffer as offline (merchandise sales and performances) revenues grow faster than online revenues; as CFO Shirley Hu said during Tuesday’s earnings call, “offline performances and artist-related merchandise sales delivered triple-digit year-on-year revenue growth” in the quarter, adding that those offline revenues have a “lower gross margin.” Another factor was Nomura’s decision on Friday (Nov. 14) to lower its TME price target to $26 from $30 while maintaining its “buy” rating.
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Spotify was one of the week’s few winners, rising 3.1% to $635.81 and recapturing some of the previous week’s 5.9% decline. The stock reached as high as $668.49 on Thursday (Nov. 14) after news reports revealed the company unveiled a new Premium Platinum plan that will take the place of Premium Family in five markets, including India and South Africa.
Among streaming stocks, TME is up 66.2% year to date but has fallen 25.9% over the last 13 weeks. Spotify has gained 58.8% in 2025 but is $150 below its all-time high of $785 set in June. Similarly, Netease Cloud Music is up 64.8% year to date but has lost 30.8% in the last 9 weeks.
The 19-company Billboard Global Music Index (BGMI) fell 0.1% to 2,700.25, marking the eighth consecutive week the index has failed to post a gain; over those eight weeks, the index has dropped 12.9%. Only three of the index’s 19 stocks finished the week in positive territory, while two stocks were unchanged and 14 were in the red.
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StubHub, which is not included in the BGMI, dropped 23.5% to $14.87 after the company’s first quarterly earnings release as a public company on Thursday (Nov. 13). StubHub reported an 8% increase in revenue but declined to provide guidance for the fourth quarter, causing the stock price to fall 21.0% on Friday alone. After the precipitous decline, StubHub is now 36.7% below its $23.50 IPO price.
Warner Music Group (WMG) finished the week in positive territory, rising 0.4% to $30.36. WMG will report results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year on Thursday (Nov. 20).
HYBE dropped 2.6% to 297,500 KRW ($205.24). On Tuesday (Nov. 11), Nomura dropped its price target on HYBE to 354,000 KRW ($TK) from 370,000 KRW ($244.22) and kept its “buy” rating. The week could have been worse: HYBE shares rose 4.5% on Thursday (Nov. 13) on news that the members of girl group NewJeans will return to HYBE imprint ADOR after losing their legal battle to break away from the company. The stock jumped 18% in the week ended Oct. 31 after the court’s ruling.
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Universal Music Group fell 0.8% to 22.30 euros ($25.92). On Thursday, Sadif Investment Analytics trimmed its price target to 28.56 euros ($33.20) from 28.82 euros ($33.50) and lowered its rating to “hold” from “strong buy.”
On the radio front, Cumulus Media fell 28.8% to $0.0085, bringing its year-to-date decline to 88.9%. Cumulus reported earnings on Oct. 31 but could have been dragged down by iHeartMedia, which reported earnings on Monday (Nov. 10) and finished the week down 12.1% to $4.07.
Markets were mixed as investors contemplated an AI bubble and the likelihood of another rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve. In the U.S., the Nasdaq composite index fell 0.5% to 22,900.59 and the S&P 500 rose 0.1% to 6,743.11. In the U.K., the FTSE 100 gained 0.2% to 9,698.37. South Korea’s KOSPI composite index improved 1.5% to 4,011.57, bringing its year-to-date gain to 64.3%. China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.2% to 3,990.49.
Trending on Billboard
La Mar Taylor has been named the first-ever Billboard Canada 40 Under 40 Visionary Award honouree. It’s a recognition of the work he’s done over more than a decade with The Weeknd, and the impact he’s had on Toronto’s creative community.
This summer, Taylor stood inside a packed Rogers Centre watching The Weeknd’s sixth sold-out hometown show. For him, it felt like a full-circle moment. He and Abel Tesfaye met as teenagers in Scarborough, dropped out of school together and built their careers from scratch. Taylor shot the cover of House of Balloons, helped shape the early XO era and has been behind the creative direction of The Weeknd’s albums, videos, tours and even the Super Bowl halftime show.
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The After Hours Til Dawn Tour, now the biggest R&B tour in history, is the latest chapter in that run. Taylor says the aim is always to push ideas further than the last project.
Outside of XO, he co-founded HXOUSE, a Toronto incubator offering space, mentorship and community for young creatives. He’s vocal about the challenges facing Canadian talent but believes persistence and strong ideas can still break through.
Taylor will receive the Visionary Award at the Billboard Canada 40 Under 40 event at the W Toronto on November 20.
Read the full interview here. — Richard Trapunski
Cameron Whitcomb’s Country Hit ‘Options’ Rises on Billboard Canadian Hot 100
Cameron Whitcomb is hitting a new peak.
After nine weeks on the chart, the Canadian country singer’s track “Options” rises 69-64 on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100, dated Nov. 15.
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“Options” is an energetic folk anthem from Whitcomb. It describes his sobriety journey, and finds Whitcomb reflecting on the various paths he could take.
“I won’t but I could / pull that bottle off that shelf / it helps me cope knowing I could be that version of myself,” he sings, supported by powerful backing vocals that lift him up along the way.
The B.C.-native is having a major year. Whitcomb first broke out as a contestant on American Idol in 2022, and has since landed four straight singles on the Canadian Hot 100 — all before his debut full-length album, The Hard Way. It’s an impressive track record for a young artist at this stage.Read more on the chart feat here. — Heather Taylor-Singh
Live Nation Report Finds Canadians Prefer Live Music as Favourite Form of Entertainment
When it comes to entertainment, Canadians prefer live music.
In a new report by Live Nation, titled Living for Live, they found that nearly four in 10 people (37%) would choose live music as their preferred form of entertainment, ranking higher than both sports and movies.
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Based on a survey of 40,000 people across 15 countries, the report captures a shift in how people spend their time, express their identities and connect with others through live music experiences.
The report noted that fans in Canada build their livelihoods around live music — 83% said a concert is one of their most memorable life moments, while 72% claimed to plan their calendars early to catch a certain artist’s show.
Live music is a major part of the Canadian music industry. Earlier this year, the Canadian Live Music Association (CLMA) revealed that live music contributes billions to the Canadian economy — $10.92 billion in 2023 — to be exact.
However, it’s not just consumers who are reaping the benefits. Two years ago, live music in Canada produced $3.73 billion in tax dollars and generated more than 101,640 jobs, contributing $5.84 billion in labour income.
Read more here. — Heather Taylor-Singh
Independent music company EMPIRE has announced a wave of key leadership moves across its publishing, commerce and Nashville divisions as the company celebrates its 15th anniversary.
Vinny Kumar has been promoted to president of EMPIRE Publishing, where he’ll continue overseeing global deals and strategy. Under Kumar’s leadership, EMPIRE Publishing has become a leading independent publisher, representing Grammy and Latin Grammy-nominated songwriters and earning recognition across ASCAP, BMI, and NMPA awards. The division debuted in Billboard’s Hot 100 Publisher Rankings Top 10 in 2024.
“We met nearly two decades ago and he’s been part of the foundation of what this company stands for,” EMPIRE founder and CEO Ghazi said of Kumar. “He will continue to lead with integrity and creativity, and his passion for music and strategic vision have helped elevate every facet of our publishing business.”
Vinny Kumar
EMPIRE Africa also launched its publishing arm under managing director Munyaradzi Chanetsa, with notable successes from writers behind Davido’s Grammy-nominated “Unavailable” and multiple Southern African hits.
Meanwhile, Matthew Maysonet has been elevated to senior vice president of commerce and streaming partnerships, leading a global team of nearly 20. Andrea Galicia moves up to senior director, while Goldie Harrison (formerly of UnitedMasters) and Daisy Moreira (a Def Jam veteran) join as directors in the division. The team will drive monetization and streaming strategies for EMPIRE’s diverse roster, including Latin and global acts.
Galicia, Harrison and Moreira
In Music City, EMPIRE Nashville added Bri Small as vice president of digital and Zak Waters as director of A&R. Small (ex-Warner Music Nashville) will lead digital engagement for Nashville artists, while songwriter and producer Waters will focus on talent discovery and creative development. Both hires underscore EMPIRE’s commitment to an artist-first, genre-fluid approach in one of the industry’s most competitive markets.
EMPIRE Nashville leader Jen Way praised Small for bringing “such a special energy and creativity to everything she does,” calling her the ideal person to guide the label’s digital strategy. She described Waters as a versatile creative with strong storytelling instincts who will “represent exactly where EMPIRE Nashville is headed—artist-first, genre-fluid, and creatively fearless.”
Bri Small (Credit: David Bradley) and Zak Waters (Credit: Zak Cassar)
Check out a full rundown of this week’s staffing news below.
Dee Hale (Sony Music Publishing)
Image Credit: Amy Allmand Photography
Trending on Billboard
Independent artists have earned more than $5 billion through TuneCore. The distribution partner for self-releasing artists — owned by Paris-based Believe — announced the $5 billion milestone today, marking the first public achievement of its kind among distributors for self-releasing artists, according to the company.
“Crossing $5 billion earned by TuneCore artists is a defining milestone for independent music—it shows that creative freedom and financial success can go hand in hand,” said TuneCore CEO Andreea Gleeson in a release. “Reaching this milestone didn’t just happen; it’s the result of listening closely to what artists need today and evolving TuneCore to power their growth. By combining innovation with intention, we’ve built programs like TuneCore Accelerator to help artists reach new audiences, and publishing services that ensure they collect every cent their music generates. This milestone reflects the extraordinary talent and drive of our artists around the world, and we’re proud to be the partner helping to fuel their success.”
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TuneCore was founded in 2006 with a mission to democratize music distribution for self-releasing artists and has evolved into a global company for independent artist development. Surpassing the $5 billion milestone reflects the cumulative earnings of all TuneCore artists since 2006 from bedroom producers to global stars alike—and comes just 17 months after surpassing the $4 billion mark.
“This achievement is a testament to TuneCore’s unwavering commitment to innovation for the independent artist community,” said YouTube’s global head of music Lyor Cohen in a statement. “For almost two decades, they’ve been committed to providing the infrastructure for artists to build durable careers and monetize their work. We share that mission—ensuring that YouTube is the global destination for their artists to build meaningful connections with their fans. We are proud to partner with TuneCore and celebrate this monumental success!”
TuneCore credits its nearly two decades of success to its parent company Believe which has direct relationships with digital service providers and streaming platforms worldwide. Another recent factor in the company’s success comes from the TuneCore Accelerator, the company’s flagship artist development platform. Accelerator provides artists with access to promotional and marketing opportunities designed to drive discovery, build audiences, and deepen fan engagement. In just the past year, artists in the program have generated over 21 billion new streams, sparked 2.5 billion artist discoveries, and seen their median royalties grow fivefold.
DSPs from Spotify to Apple Music are celebrating TuneCore’s milestone. With Spotify’s svp/global head of music Charlie Hellman stating, “We are proud to partner with TuneCore to uplift independent artists and enable countless songwriters, producers, and performers to turn their passion for music into a career. TuneCore paying $5B to artists is an inspiring milestone that reflects how far independent music has come in the streaming era.”
Apple Music and Beats vp Oliver Schusser added: “At Apple, we celebrate the creativity and value of creators across every stage of development, and we commend TuneCore for helping so many talented independent artists from around the world earn money and build careers on their own terms. Congrats!”
Globally, TuneCore’s reach continues to expand, with over 75% of new artists and labels joining TuneCore in the last year coming from outside the United States.
Trending on Billboard
BMG leader Thomas Coesfeld has been appointed as the next chairman and CEO of global parent company Bertelsmann, succeeding Thomas Rabe when his contract wraps on Dec. 31, 2026. Coesfeld will officially take over as chairman and CEO on Jan. 1, 2027, marking a generational shift in leadership for the global media conglomerate, the company announced Thursday (Nov. 13).
Coesfeld has served as CEO of BMG since 2023, succeeding longtime chief Hartwig Masuch, and joined Bertelsmann’s executive board in 2024. Before that, he was BMG’s CFO and previously chief strategy officer on the executive committee of Bertelsmann Printing Group. He began his career as a management consultant at McKinsey in Munich.
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According to the announcement, Coesfeld is expected to lead both Bertelsmann and BMG “in a dual capacity.” BMG representatives confirmed this arrangement to Billboard.
Outgoing CEO Rabe, who has led Bertelsmann for 15 years, praised the board’s choice in Coesfeld as his successor. “We have worked closely and with great trust for many years, and I will do everything possible to ensure a smooth transition,” he said. “Bertelsmann’s leadership will be in excellent hands with him and his team.”
“I would like to thank the Supervisory Board – and in particular its Chairman, Christoph Mohn – for the trust they have placed in me,” added Coesfeld. “I am very much looking forward to assuming responsibility for leading Bertelsmann. It is a challenge I will take on with the full support of the Executive Board, top management, and all employees.”
Bertelsmann operates in about 50 countries and, in addition to BMG, includes divisions such as RTL Group, Penguin Random House and Arvato. In its latest interim report for the first half of 2025, the Gütersloh-based company posted revenues of €9.1 billion (approximately $9.8 billion), up 1.2% year-over-year.
The company’s supervisory board also announced that Clément Schwebig, currently a senior media executive with over 20 years of experience, will join Bertelsmann’s executive board as CEO of RTL Group effective May 1 of next year. Schwebig previously held leadership roles at RTL in multiple countries.
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After taking over as CEO of BMG in 2023, Coesfeld implemented a sweeping restructuring aimed at “local where necessary, global where possible.” He centralized catalog, sales, and marketing teams into global roles, expanded tech investments and made Los Angeles the hub for catalog operations. Coesfeld also ended BMG’s distribution deal with Warner’s ADA, bringing digital distribution in-house while partnering with Universal for physical formats. Additional moves included layoffs, shuttering Modern Recordings and discontinuing international marketing and film/TV divisions — all part of a strategy to streamline operations and focus on publishing, recordings and data-driven growth.
In its most recent earnings report, Berlin-based BMG posted steady operating profits despite lower revenue, reflecting its focus on core digital music operations. For the first half of 2025, revenue fell 8% year-over-year to €424 million ($463 million). Streaming revenue grew at a high single-digit rate, lifting digital’s share of total revenue to 72%. Coesfeld credited the gains to catalog acquisitions, distribution efficiencies and a strategic shift away from lower-margin physical formats and live entertainment.
Trending on Billboard
LONDON — Blockbuster tours by the likes of Taylor Swift, Bruce Springsteen, Take That and Liam Gallagher contributed a record total of 8 billion pounds ($10.5 billion) to the United Kingdom’s economy in 2024.
The figure is up 5% from the previous year, according to the newly released This Is Music study from UK Music, the umbrella organization encompassing a range of bodies including the BPI and collection society PRS For Music.
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The results are being heralded as a huge success, with 2025 likely to bring a bumper uptick in the trend, thanks in part to headline-dominating stadium tours from the likes of Oasis, Coldplay, and Dua Lipa, plus U.K. arena residencies from pop heavyweights Billie Eilish, Sabrina Carpenter and more.
Published annually, the latest edition of This is Music takes a deep dive into how the U.K. music business fared both at home and on the world stage. It outlines employment stats, international music sales, plus gross revenue through ticket sales, tourism and more in order to paint a full picture of the industry’s contribution to the country’s overall GDP.
A strong appetite for British artists and songs helped push a notable increase in export figures in 2024. Charli XCX’s Brat LP – which saw her enjoy a global breakthrough and scoop eight Grammy nominations – thrived overseas, while Lola Young landed a chart smash in “Messy,” both contributing to a 5% rise to 4.8 billion pounds ($6.3 billion).
Employment also lifted by 2%, with a net total of 4,000 new jobs in the U.K. taking the number of people working in the music industry to 220,000 (full-time equivalent posts), reports UK Music. The breakdown of that figure, however, shows that a significant portion of these people are vulnerable to the cost of living. 43% of respondents earned less than 14,000 pounds ($18,400) from music, forcing them to turn to other jobs in order to make a stable income.
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Elsewhere, U.K. artist royalties surpassed a billion for the first time, with PRS for Music paying out a record 1.02 billion pounds ($1.3 billion) to its members – an 8.1% increase on last year.
“The UK music industry remains one of our greatest international success stories,” said the foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper MP, in a statement. “Every year, we see more new artists from Britain becoming global stars, and our existing world-famous musicians reaching new heights, all of them adding to the incredible heritage of creativity, talent and genius that has defined UK music throughout our history.”
Despite these fiscal wins, however, the report warned that the U.K. music industry still faces a number of tough challenges. There are potential risks posed by generative AI on music creation, which could erode employability across the sector, as more sophisticated tools emerge and pose a new rival for listener attention.
Another area where UK Music said urgent action was needed was further government support for the grassroots touring sector. In a survey conducted between March 20 and June 12, 2025, UK Music spoke to 1306 music creators, including songwriters, musicians, DJs and producers, and found that many emerging artists were finding it increasingly difficult to play live at this level, with income from touring not keeping pace with costs.
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95% of these respondents reported decreased earnings as a direct consequence of Brexit, up 8% from 2023, due to increasing touring costs and a subsequent impact on royalties as their music is performed less in Europe. As a result, UK Music called for an agreement between the UK and EU to lift visa and work permit requirements across EU borders.
“The status quo on these two big issues is currently tilted against music’s interests, with new survey data on both AI and EU touring evidencing why we need the balance to swing back in our favour,” said Tom Kiehl, chief executive of UK Music. He also urged the government to take “urgent action” in the key areas addressed in a bid to boost growth, exports and jobs in the U.K. music industry.
Elsewhere, the rate of economic growth in the music industry slowed, with Gross Value Added up by five per cent in 2024. This is lower than the double-digit growth seen over the past few years as the industry recovered from the pandemic.
The report cited ongoing threats to grassroots venues and a lack of big-ticket releases by British artists in 2024 as contributing factors to this figure.
“In recent years UK Music has reported that the music industry has enjoyed double-digit annual growth. That growth has now halved indicates a levelling off of the immediate post-pandemic boost that we experienced, as well as other underlying issues set out in this report,” said Kiehl.
He went on to describe how he remains hopeful that the U.K. music industry can overcome the challenges it faces during this “pivotal moment.” He added: “Let’s come together to make sure we realise our full potential.”
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A flurry of earnings reports for the quarter ended Sept. 30 show a continued divide in the music landscape. Live music companies such as Live Nation and MSG Entertainment posted double-digit growth as concert demand surged, while HYBE and SM Entertainment also benefitted from strong concert revenues. Streaming also spiked once again, pushing Spotify and Universal Music Group (UMG) to double-digit revenue growth. Legacy media didn’t fare as well, however: iHeartMedia revenue slipped slightly, while SiriusXM leveraged cost-cutting to compensate for flat revenue.
Here’s a running list, in alphabetical order, of the music companies that released earnings results (as of Nov. 11) for the quarter ended Sept 30, 2025.
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Cumulus Media: The radio company’s revenue fell 11.5% to $180.3 million and net loss grew to $20.4 million from $10.3 million in the prior-year quarter. The advertising business remains “challenging for legacy media,” CEO Mary Berner said. Broadcast radio revenue sank 17.2% to $115.0 million. Digital revenue fell 2.6% to $39.0 million, though it was up 8.4% if the loss of The Daily Wire and Dan Bongino aren’t counted. Check out our full radio earnings roundup here.
Deezer: Revenue dropped 1% to $154 million as gains from self-paying users almost offset losses in business-to-business subscribers. Direct subscribers grew in number to 5.5 million, up nearly 10%, and direct subscription revenue increased 1.6% to $103 million. Revenue from partnerships fell 12.6% to $42 million and subscribers from these partnerships dropped 24.5% from the prior-year quarter. Go to the full article for more details.
HYBE: Tours by BTS member Jin and groups SEVENTEEN and TOMORROW X TOGETHER helped Q3 revenue rise 38% to $519 million, as strong concert revenue ($174 million) helped make up for recorded music’s 11.5% decline to $136 million. Operating loss was $30 million, a big turnaround from a $40 million operating profit a year earlier. More details in the full article.
iHeartMedia: CEO Bob Pittman was “pleased” with the performance and boasted of new partnerships with TikTok and Amazon Ads, which will expand the company’s podcast and advertising businesses, respectively. Revenue of $997 million was down 1.1% (up 2.8% excluding the prior-year period’s political advertising). Adjusted EBITDA was flat at $205 million. Podcast revenue jumped 22% to $140 million while the multi-platform group, which included broadcast radio, fell 5% to $591 million. Q4 guidance is a low-single-digit revenue decline. Find more details here.
Live Nation: As fans packed themselves into stadiums in record numbers, revenue rose 11% to $8.5 billion and adjusted operating income (AOI) grew 14% to $1.03 billion. Concerts revenue was up 11% to $7.3 billion. Ticketing revenue rose 15% to $798 million. Sponsorships revenue jumped 13% to $443 million. Importantly, increases in deferred revenue suggest Live Nation will experience additional growth into 2026. Read about the earnings here and check out Billboard’s follow-up article with additional details from the earnings call.
MSG Entertainment: Boosted by a record number of concerts at the Madison Square Garden arena, MSG Entertainment’s revenue jumped 14% to $158.3 million and adjusted operating income improved to $7.1 million from $1.9 million in the prior-year period. Revenue from concerts rose $8.3 million while sporting events revenue improved $6.8 million. Food and beverage revenue jumped 20%, or $3.9 million. Looking ahead, MSGE’s Christmas Spectacular, the company’s annual holiday production at Radio City Music Hall, is slated for 215 performances, up from 200 a year earlier.
Reservoir Media: Fiscal second quarter revenue of $45.4 million was up 7% organically, or 12% including acquisitions. Net income of $2.2 million was up from $0.2 million in the prior-year quarter. Music publishing revenue rose 8% to $30.9 million, while recorded music revenue jumped 21% to $13.0 million. The results prompted management to adjust upward its forecasts for full-year revenue and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
SiriusXM: The satellite radio company’s stock price jumped 10% after it raised 2025 guidance for revenue, EBITDA and cash flow. Although it reported a 1% dip in revenue, the company rebounded from a loss to produce net income of $297 million; while subscriber revenue was down, cost-cutting and layoffs helped offset the decline. Adjusted EBITDA fell 2.5% to $676 million. CEO Jennifer Witz said she is “confident” that improvements will allow the company to reach its target of $1.5 billion of free cash flow by 2027. Check out Billboard’s coverage for more details.
SM Entertainment: Led by concerts and music releases from aespa and NCT WISH, revenue rose 33% to $237.3 million. Operating profit jumped 262% to $35.6 million. Recorded music rose 33% $71.4 million, while new album sales grew to 5.42 million from 3.61 million in the third quarter of 2024. And concert revenue rose 38% to $38.7 million despite the company having fewer concerts compared to the prior-year period. Go to the full article for more info.
Sony Music: Rising streaming income and the success of the anime series Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle helped Sony Music’s revenue jump 21% to $3.65 billion and operating income climb 28% to $776 million. Overall streaming revenues rose 12% in recorded music and 25% in the publishing division. Physical sales rose 6%. Looking ahead, Sony increased its full-year forecast for Sony Music’s sales by 6% to $13.3 billion. The full article has all the details.
Sphere Entertainment Co.: The Wizard of Oz and the Backstreet Boys boosted Sphere parent company’s revenue to $263 million and helped turn negative adjusted operating income (AOI) into $36 million of positive AOI. Oz has sold more than 1 million tickets to date, and showings of that title and other movies rose to 220 from 207 in the prior-year quarter. The Sphere segment itself posted an operating loss of $84 million — a $40 million improvement from a year ago. More details in the full article.
Spotify: The audio giant’s subscribers rose 12% to 281 million and gross margin improved by 56 basis points — 0.56 of a point — to 31.6%. Those improvements led revenue to increase 12% to $5 billion and gross profit to grow 9% to $1.84 billion. “We have the tools we need — pricing, product innovation, operational leverage, and eventually the ads turnaround — to deliver both revenue growth and profit expansion,” said CEO Daniel Ek. Check out our full story on the earnings release and our follow-up article with details from the earnings call.
Universal Music Group: In another strong quarter, UMG posted a 10.2% revenue gain (in constant currency) to $3.5 billion. EBITDA rose 11.6% (also in constant currency) to $694 million and EBITDA margin ticked up to 22.0% from 21.6%. Recorded music subscription revenue, a closely watched metric, rose 8.6% while other streaming revenue was flat at $394 million. Go to the full article for all the details and check out the follow-up article for more insights.
