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Alternative-pop artist Mod Sun has signed a management deal with Shelter Music Group, the company tells Billboard. The firm is home to iconic artists and acts including ZZ Top, Joe Perry and Fleetwood Mac. Mod Sun will be represented by Carl Stubner alongside Jackson Stubner and A&R James Robinson. “We at Shelter Music Group are beyond […]
Most songwriters understand the importance of affiliating with a performing rights organization (PRO), like ASCAP, BMI, GMR or SESAC in the United States — a critical step in making sure they can collect the royalties from public performances of songs they’ve written or cowritten. Even when signed to a publishing deal in which the publisher collects most revenue generated by songwriting, songwriters can still rely on collecting the writer’s share of public performance income from their PRO directly.
Is there an equivalent for artists who are signed to record labels? Enter neighboring rights!
“Neighboring rights” is simply the term used to refer to the public performance rights associated with a sound recording, which generates public performance royalties for artists and the sound recording copyright owner(s). The term comes from the concept that these rights are related to, or “neighbor,” the performance rights of songwriters. If you have performed on a sound recording (or are the owner or licensee of sound recording copyrights), you are likely eligible to receive “neighboring rights” royalties from the performance/broadcast of your recording around the world. This is where SoundExchange enters the conversation, but more on that below.
Here, we will detail what neighboring rights are and how artists can maximize their royalties collections both domestically and abroad to make sure they aren’t missing any money they are owed.
Music Copyright Primer
A short primer on music copyrights may be helpful before we dive into neighboring rights. Remember that any given musical work is comprised of two separate but equal components (each part receiving its own copyright): (i) the musical composition (i.e., the music and lyrics) and (ii) the sound recording of a musical composition. With neighboring rights, we are only looking at the recordings — more specifically, the contributions of the artists who performed, as well as the owners of the recordings.
Once a sound recording is created, the featured performers and the owner (or eventual licensee) of that sound recording are entitled, by laws in various countries around the world, to receive public performance royalties when the recording is publicly performed or broadcast. These are neighboring rights royalties.
While the U.S. does not recognize the full suite of neighboring rights in other countries (more on that below), there is a limited performance right in sound recordings that was established in the U.S. by the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act. That limited neighboring right entitles performers and sound recording owners/licensors to neighboring rights royalties when their sound recordings are publicly performed via “noninteractive digital streams” (e.g., Pandora, SiriusXM and others where the listener doesn’t choose the order of recordings played).
What Are Neighboring Rights?
The term “neighboring rights” is one that confuses musicians and their representatives alike, but as stated above, it simply refers to the public performance rights that accompany a copyright for a sound recording. For the beneficiaries of neighboring rights (artists who perform on sound recordings and the owners of the sound recording copyrights), royalties are generated when a sound recording is publicly performed or broadcast (i.e., not sold) via terrestrial radio (e.g., an FM station), web radio (e.g., SiriusXM), television, digital streaming platforms, and public venues like restaurants and clubs.
Neighboring rights are derived from the 1961 Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations, where various countries negotiated how to compensate performers for exploitation of their sound recordings that they did not directly agree to. The Rome Convention provided that signatory countries (excluding the U.S., which is not a party to the Rome Convention) must establish their own rules and regulations governing the performance of sound recordings, including royalty rates, the types of uses that qualify and the transferability of performance rights. As a result, the rules and regulations surrounding neighboring rights vary from country to country because they are determined by local statutes.
However, most countries that recognize neighboring rights (if not all of them) require a royalty to be paid to both the featured performer and the owner of the copyright each time that sound recording is publicly performed or broadcast. Similar to how public performance royalties for musical compositions are split into the separate “writer’s share” and “publisher’s share,” in practice, the total pot of neighboring royalties is split 50-50 between the featured performer (and the non-featured performers), on one hand, and the rightsholder, on the other hand, with these halves being the so-called “featured performer’s share” and “label’s share” of neighboring rights royalties. In this way, neighboring rights complement the performance right for songwriters.
Under U.S. law, only certain performances of a sound recording via what are called “non-interactive digital streaming services” generate these neighboring rights royalties. In other words, the performance of a sound recording in a bar or restaurant in the U.S. does not generate the same royalties that a performance of that sound recording in certain foreign countries would, but, featured performers on sound recordings or a sound recording rightsholders in the U.S. may still be entitled to collect neighboring rights royalties from performances abroad.
What About SoundExchange?
As mentioned above, the U.S. only provides an exclusive right to publicly perform sound recordings via noninteractive digital streams, meaning that not all digital streams are equal. The key difference is whether a stream is interactive or noninteractive. For example, a stream of a sound recording on a platform like Pandora is noninteractive because the user does not get to choose much beyond the radio station that they listen to. However, streaming a sound recording on a platform like Apple Music is interactive because the user can choose how, when and how long to listen to that given sound recording. Therefore, a sound recording streamed on Pandora can earn digital performance royalties in the U.S., whereas a sound recording streamed on Spotify cannot. (Note: Spotify pays all rightsholders a license fee. It just isn’t obligated to also obtain a digital performance license from SoundExchange.)
SoundExchange is the only entity authorized by U.S. Law to administer, collect and distribute sound recording performance royalties. This means that if a platform like Pandora wants to obtain the rights to digitally stream sound recordings in the states, which would require the payment by Pandora of neighboring rights royalties to the applicable artists and sound recording owners, it has to go to SoundExchange for a license. Those license fees will make up the neighboring rights royalties generated in the U.S. and are payable by SoundExchange to the featured (and non-featured) artists and sound recording owners.
How Do I Collect Neighboring Rights Royalties?
Now that you know what they are, how do you actually collect these monies?
There are a few ways that featured performers and/or rightsholder in the United States can collect neighboring rights royalties abroad.
SoundExchange International Mandate. SoundExchange has collection agreements with its counterpart organizations abroad that allow it to collect neighboring rights royalties outside of the U.S. All the artist or rightsholder needs to do is register as a member and opt into the international mandate. This is the easiest and quickest option, and an added benefit is that SoundExchange pays out monthly.
Neighboring Rights Administration Agreements. There are several companies that specialize in neighboring rights administration and collection (e.g., Premier, Downtown) with which an artist or rightsholder can enter into a neighboring rights administration agreement. The artist or rightsholder authorizes the administrator to collect royalties on their behalf, and then it affiliates the artist or rightsholder with each society worldwide and collects neighboring rights royalties directly from all societies in exchange for an administration fee that gets deducted before the administrator pays out. Typically, neighboring rights administrators account quarterly or semiannually.
Affiliating Directly Abroad. Another option is for the artist or rightsholder to affiliate directly with the various neighboring rights societies in each territory abroad and authorize those societies to collect on their behalf in the applicable territory. Alternatively, in a manner akin to the SoundExchange international mandate, an artist or rightsholder could affiliate with one society in one territory and have that society collect worldwide. With either of these options, there would be no (or a small) administration fee, but the process for the former option entails a lot of work.
W. Joseph Anderson is a partner and Suna Izgi and Alex Spring are associates in Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP’s Los Angeles office. Manatt is a multidisciplinary, integrated national professional services firm with more than 60 years of experience in the entertainment industry, representing a broad spectrum of creators and companies across music, film and TV, games, sports, and more.
Billboard is partnering with Session Studio on its January SongDrop contest, which will be judged by ABBA‘s Björn Ulvaeus — with help from staffers from the magazine. Session Studio, which was founded by Ulvaeus, producer Max Martin and songwriter Niclas Molinder, makes a software platform that songwriters, producers and musicians can use to collaborate, distribute and claim credit for their contributions to recordings so they can collect royalties.
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The contest will run until Feb. 6, with the goal of identifying new talent. Ulvaeus will make the final decision on the winner, who’ll receive $1,000, a yearlong ProTools Ultimate Subscription, and a one-year membership to Billboard Pro, the definitive news source of information on the music industry, with more than 250 charts, a daily briefing and special reports. Two runners-up will also receive one-year memberships to Billboard Pro. The winners will also be announced on the Billboard website.
“I haven’t competed in a song contest since Eurovision in 1974, but I can still remember the excitement – and I guess it went pretty well,” said Ulvaeus, who 50 years ago famously won international exposure for his band at the Eurovision Song Contest.
Session Studio runs the SongDrop contest every month, in partnership with another company in the music business each time. The idea is to expose new songwriting talent to industry professionals, as well as music fans.
“At a time when so much about the music business is changing, it all still starts with the song,” says Billboard editorial director Hannah Karp. “With more distractions than ever competing for listeners’ attention, it’s more vital than ever to identify new songwriting talent that can cut through the noise. We hope this SongDrop contest will surface some of tomorrow’s hitmakers.”
Session Studio was founded to make it easier for streaming services to accurately identify the creators and rightsholders of compositions by offering them a way to register for credit as they work. The free app also allows users to assign songwriting credits so they can be tracked online. It has been recognized by various rightsholders and music services, including Universal Music Group, Spotify, TuneCore, SoundCloud, PPL, ASCAP and BMI.
Songwriters who are 18 and up may enter compositions that they have written themselves or with collaborators, including with AI tools. Click here for a complete list of rules.
Nate Albert has been appointed president of Giant Music, the independent record label launched in 2022 by Irving Azoff and his son Jeffrey Azoff.
A recording artist and creative A&R executive with major label experience, Albert joins the team at Giant which includes co-founder Shawn Holiday, Matt LaMotte and Charles Hamilton, Billboard can reveal.
When Giant Music was established as part of the Azoff Company, Holiday ran the venture’s day-to-day operations.
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“Partnering with Nate at Giant is the next step for us in building a world class label,” Holiday explains in a statement, issued Thursday (Jan. 11). “As an artist himself, he understands how to help artists achieve their dreams and that is what we do at Giant.”
Albert is co-founder, guitarist, songwriter and co-producer in ska punk band The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, which split in 2022 after more than 30 years, 11 albums and 10 EPs. Six of the band’s LPs cracked the Billboard 200, with 1997’s Let’s Face It peaking at No. 27 and logging 50 weeks total weeks on the chart.
He comes to Giant Music from Warner Records, where he developed and signed best new artist Grammy Award nominee Omar Apollo, Teddy Swims, and others. Before that, Albert was an A&R executive at Capitol Records and Republic Records, where he signed The Weeknd and Maggie Rogers, and worked on projects with Dua Lipa, Marshmello, Roddy Ricch, Troye Sivan and more.
“I am thrilled to help build a new label from an artist’s and manager’s perspective in 2024,” he comments on his new role. “Irving and Jeffrey have a sterling reputation as defenders of artists’ rights and that spirit and point of view will continue to thrive at Giant Music.”
The goal, he continues, “is not just to create another option for the creative community, but to create a place for the creative community to call home.”
Giant Music revives the Giant name for the Azoffs, with the elder Azoff launching Giant Records in 1990 as a joint venture with Warner Bros. Records. The label went on to work with artists including MC Hammer and Color Me Badd.
Based in Los Angeles, The Azoff Company’s portfolio includes Full Stop Management, Global Music Rights, Oak View Group, Iconic Artists Group, and Giant Music, which boasts the motto: “Creativity, transparency, and passion.”
Giant’s roster includes Ayleen Valentine, Cash Cobain and Fendida Rappa.
Google has laid off hundreds of employees working on its hardware, voice assistance and engineering teams as part of cost-cutting measures.
The cuts come as Google looks towards “responsibly investing in our company’s biggest priorities and the significant opportunities ahead,” the company said in a statement.
“Some teams are continuing to make these kinds of organizational changes, which include some role eliminations globally,” it said.
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Google earlier said it was eliminating a few hundred roles, with most of the impact on its augmented reality hardware team.
The cuts follow pledges by executives of Google and its parent company Alphabet to reduce costs. A year ago, Google said it would lay off 12,000 employees or around 6% of its workforce.
In a post on X — previously known as Twitter — the Alphabet Workers Union described the job cuts as “another round of needless layoffs.”
“Our members and teammates work hard every day to build great products for our users, and the company cannot continue to fire our coworkers while making billions every quarter,” the union wrote. “We won’t stop fighting until our jobs are safe!”
Google is not the only technology company cutting back. In the past year, Meta — the parent company of Facebook — has slashed more than 20,000 jobs to reassure investors. Meta’s stock price gained about 178% in 2023.
Spotify said in December that it was axing 17% of its global workforce, the music streaming service’s third round of layoffs in 2023 as it moved to slash costs and improve its profitability.
Earlier this week, Amazon laid off hundreds of employees in its Prime Video and studios units. It also will lay off about 500 employees who work on its livestreaming platform Twitch.
Amazon has cut thousands of jobs after a hiring surge during the pandemic. In March, Amazon announced that it planned to lay off 9,000 employees, on top of 18,000 employees it said that it would lay off in January 2023.
Google is currently locked in a fierce rivalry with Microsoft as both firms strive to lead in the artificial intelligence domain.
Microsoft has stepped up its artificial intelligence offerings to rival Google’s. In September, Microsoft introduced a Copilot feature that incorporates artificial intelligence into products like search engine Bing, browser Edge as well as Windows for its corporate customers.
Beatport is launching the new year with a pair of key promotions. The company’s CFO Matt Gralen will now also serve as president, while Helen Sartory will serve as chief revenue officer for all of the company’s revenue drivers, including the electronic music digital download store Beatport and the open format music download platform Beatsource, along with Plugin Boutique, Loopcloud, LabelRadar and Beatport Amp.
Both Gralen and Sartory will continue reporting to Beatport CEO Robb McDaniels, with Gralen and McDaniels to collaborate on company-wide strategy and Sartory overseeing the next phase of The Beatport Group’s growth strategy. Both are based in the company’s London office.
The company reports that Beatport’s annual revenue has more than tripled since McDaniels took over as CEO in 2017. A representative for Beatport tells Billboard that the company’s annual revenue for 2023 was “well over” $100 million. In 2022, the digital service claimed to have sold 25,519,770 song downloads — making up nearly 12% of all tracks downloaded globally.
“Matt and Helen have proven themselves as trusted leaders through building out our product portfolio, supporting our diverse team and culture, and delivering profitable growth,” said McDaniels in a statement. “We believe that, just as streaming revolutionized the music industry in the previous decade, a significant shift to more engaged and interactive experiences is coming. DJs are the originators of this movement and all types of creators and fans are joining. I am pleased to have Matt and Helen take on expanded roles as we continue to invest in this future.”
Before starting at Beatport, Gralen served as executive vp of corporate development at UnitedMasters, a distribution platform for independent artists. He also previously held positions at Mass Appeal, Raine Group and Goldman Sachs.
“Our team at Beatport cares deeply about the future of music for creators and fans, and we believe that strong businesses can help drive positive change,” added Gralen. “I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity ahead and the team I work alongside. We all look forward to delivering for Beatport’s global community.”
Sartory has been with Beatport for a year and a half, and most recently served as senior vp of creator services. She previously held positions at The Rattle, Greenhill & Co. and Lazard.
“The last year and a half at Beatport has been incredibly rewarding,” Sartory said. “We’ve built innovative tools and technology for artists, producers and labels, and have increased incremental revenue opportunities along the way. I am looking forward to working with the entire Beatport team in this expanded role to continue to transform our business.”
Sphere Entertainment has said it’s committed to working with alternative “forward-thinking cities around the world” after officially withdrawing plans to build a Sphere concert arena in London.
On Monday (Jan. 8), Sphere Entertainment’s sister company, Madison Square Garden Entertainment (MSGE), which is owned by tycoon James Dolan, told British officials that it would not be proceeding with its long-standing proposal to build a Sphere venue in the British capital city.
The announcement came less than two months after London Mayor Sadiq Khan blocked plans for the 21,500-capacity, 300-foot-tall spherical building because of the impact he believed it would have on the surrounding area, including high energy use and the “significant light intrusion” it would cause local residents.
In a letter to the planning inspectorate seen by Billboard, Richard Constable, MSGE’s executive vp/global head of government affairs and social impact, told officials that “following careful review, we cannot continue to participate in a process that is merely a political football between rival parties.”
“It is extremely disappointing that Londoners will not benefit from the Sphere’s groundbreaking technology and the thousands of well-paying jobs it would have created,” wrote Constable, confirming that MSGE — acting on behalf of Sphere Entertainment — was officially withdrawing its application from the planning process.
The termination of MSGE’s plans for a London version of its $2 billion Sphere venue in Las Vegas follows years of controversy surrounding the project, which was due to be built on a five-acre plot of land in Stratford, East London (the site has been largely derelict since 2012 when it was used as a temporary coach park during the London Olympics).
A proposal for what was later christened MSG Sphere London was first submitted in 2019, but it immediately received strong opposition from local councillors and campaign groups, as well as AEG, the owner and operator of the 20,000-capacity The O2 arena located less than five miles away.
Despite residents’ concerns, The London Legacy Development Company provisionally greenlit the plans in March 2022 before they were subsequently overturned by Mayor Khan last November.
In a statement, Sphere Entertainment said it had informed Michael Gove — the U.K. secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, who initiated a review of the mayor’s decision in December — that it would not be moving forward with its plans for London and would not be participating in a review.
“We are committed to continuing to work collaboratively with forward-thinking cities around the world who are serious about bringing this next-generation entertainment experience to their communities,” said a spokesperson for Sphere Entertainment.
Sphere Entertainment Co., formerly Madison Square Garden Entertainment (MSGE), was formed in April when MSGE’s traditional live entertainment business, which includes the Madison Square Garden and Radio City Music Hall venues in New York, split off from the Sphere and MSG Networks businesses. Sphere retained a 33% stake in MSGE.
The five-acre site earmarked for the London Sphere, which MSGE bought for around £60 million ($76 million), is now expected to be put up for sale.
Meanwhile, the developer is understood to be in talks with multiple international markets about rolling out the Sphere model in other global cities, following its high-grossing debut in Las Vegas last year with a residency by U2.
In December, the New York Post reported that Dolan was meeting with investors in Abu Dhabi about building a second Sphere in the United Arab Emirates capital. Also last year, several South Korean newspapers reported that the city of Hanam was another potential future location after talks took place between city officials and representatives of MSGE. Sphere Entertainment Co. declined to comment on those reports when contacted by Billboard.
Columbia Records announced Joe Gallo‘s promotion to GM on Wednesday (Jan. 10). Gallo, who started at the label more than a decade ago, previously held the position of executive vp/head of sales. “Spending the last ten years in a commercial role allowed me to work with teams across the label and its storied roster,” Gallo […]
After 25 years, Jack Sussman is stepping down as executive vp of specials, music, live events and alternative programming for CBS Entertainment. Sussman, who will leave following the Feb. 4 Grammy Awards, will return to producing, including serving as executive producer of two tentpole CBS specials, the Tony Awards and the Kennedy Center Honors.
Mackenzie Mitchell has been upped to vp of specials, while Mitch Graham will continue to run unscripted as executive vp of alternative, which he has overseen since 2020. Graham will report to Amy Reisenbach, president of CBS Entertainment, while Mitchell will report to Reisenbach and Bruce Gillmer, president, of music, music talent, programming and events for CBS parent Paramount and chief content officer of music of Paramount +.
“This is a storied department and I know both Mackenzie and Mitch will lead the team with distinction, transparency and positivity,” Reisenbach said in a staff memo obtained by Billboard. “They both launched careers and rose through the ranks at CBS while establishing deep roots in the TV community with limitless passion and creativity for making quality popular television.”
Sussman joined CBS in 1998 following roles at MTV, VH1, CNN and NBC and oversaw a wide variety of specials and yearly awards shows at the network. “I love live television,” he told Billboard in a 2017 profile. “You get one chance at it, and everybody’s got to be going in the same direction, because you are walking a tightrope.”
In an internal email, Sussman wrote to his colleagues, “I’m returning to my roots. I get to close out my career how I started in this business — producing. Working with talented artists and other creative producers has always been the best part of the job and now I will get to do that full time.” In addition to working on the Tonys and Kennedy Center Honors, Sussman says he will be “developing and producing outside passion projects for various platforms and live events along with the pro social and charitable organizations I have connected with throughout my career. A perfect next chapter as I look to slow down a little.”
Sussman has worked on more than 100 specials at CBS and with such artists as Garth Brooks, Bruno Mars, Celine Dion, Adele and Michael Jackson. “I’m so grateful to all the artists, managers, producers, record labels and production teams I’ve worked with along the way,” he wrote. “I had the good fortune early in my run at CBS of being mentored (and yelled at on occasion) by the giants who started the live television event business. I learned so much from them, and only hope I have been able to pass along some of that historical wisdom to this next generation.”
Both Graham and Mitchell have long tenures at CBS. Mitchell began at CBS in 2014 as a temporary assistant and had risen to vp while working on such annual shows as the Grammy Awards, Kennedy Center Honors and Tony Awards, as well as such specials as Garth & Trisha Live! and Adele: One Night Only. Graham started in the publicity department in 1999 and transitioned to the alternative department in 2013. He has worked on such shows as Amazing Race and Survivor. He has overseen the unscripted division since 2020.
“So proud to have watched these individuals and the collective team grow,” wrote Sussman in his memo to CBS staffers. “Mitch Graham is the best Alternative executive in town and Mackenzie Mitchell has grown into an outstanding executive overseeing our music and specials. You will not find two finer humans. The team is in great hands moving forward. They are simply the best, and a big reason this decision is both easier and harder.”
Sussman most recently oversaw CBS’ New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash. The Dec. 31 show averaged 8.31 million viewers, more than doubling its primetime audience in 2022. This made it CBS’s most-watched original entertainment special since the Grammy Awards in February 2023. CBS also scored a ratings win with Jan. 7’s Golden Globes, which averaged 9.47 million viewers in its first year on the network, according to Nielsen.
At the midyear point of 2023, Republic Records had put up a 12.46% current market share — defined as albums released in the past 18 months — which was a remarkable figure, and more than 4.5% higher than the second-largest label. Now, as 2023 has come to a close, Republic finished the year even higher, reaching an eye-popping 13.47% current market share for the year. That’s the highest full-year mark since at least 2015, when streaming began to lift the industry out of its post-CD doldrums, and more than 3% higher than its current share in 2022, which was a then-industry-leading 10.38%.
Republic’s high-water mark stems from a combination of both enduring releases dating back to the end of 2022 and massive albums from two of the biggest stars on the planet this year: Taylor Swift and Morgan Wallen. For full-year 2023, Swift and Wallen (signed through Republic’s deal with Big Loud, which on its own commanded a 2.33% current share) combined for seven of the top 10 albums in U.S. consumption units, according to Luminate, including four of the top five. With Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains ranking at No. 10, Republic had an astonishing eight of the 10 biggest albums in the United States in 2023. And Republic’s fourth quarter was even more dominant: In the final three months of the year, the label’s current market share ballooned to 16.79%, buoyed by new albums from Drake, Nicki Minaj and Stray Kids. That’s higher than the current share of the entire Warner Music Group across that three-month period, which stood at 15.50%.
Following Republic — which includes Island, Big Loud, Mercury Records, Cash Money and indie distributor Imperial in its market share — Interscope Geffen A&M (IGA) came in second in current share, at 8.80%, up from the 8.72% it tallied in 2022. The label — which also encompasses Verve Label Group — scored another big success with Olivia Rodrigo’s sophomore album GUTS. It also saw critical acclaim for Verve’s Jon Batiste, once again a Grammy darling, and continued its extremely strong recent track record of breaking new artists, with Gracie Abrams up for best new artist at this year’s Grammys — a category the label has won in three of the past four years.
The success of Republic and IGA helped parent company Universal Music Group roar back to a 35.84% current market share for 2023, jumping two points year over year from 2022’s 33.57%. In second, Sony Music Entertainment also grew year over year, up to 27.08% from 2022’s 26.99%, while Warner Music Group dipped to 16.95%, down from last year’s 18.30%. The indies, by distribution ownership, accounted for 20.13% current market share, down from 21.14% in 2022.
In third and fourth place in current share among frontline labels are a pair of Warner Music Group labels, Atlantic Records (6.83%, down from 9.15% in 2022) and Warner Records (5.96%, up from 4.86% in 2022). Atlantic (encompassing 300 Elektra Entertainment), which dipped from second to third place year over year, scored a big win with the Barbie soundtrack as well as No. 1s from Lil Uzi Vert and Jack Harlow, despite a two-plus point percentage drop in current share. Meanwhile, Warner Records — which includes Warner Latin, catalog label Rhino and parts of Warner Nashville in its share — surged from sixth place last year to fourth place this year with a more than 1% boost. Zach Bryan’s self-titled album and No. 1 Hot 100 single “I Remember Everything” led the way, with Bryan landing at No. 4 on Billboard’s year-end Artist 100 ranking and his “Something in the Orange” being the third-most-streamed song of 2023.
In fifth, Capitol Music Group also saw a big year-over-year boost in current share, from 4.97% in 2022 to 5.90% in 2023. The label — which remains in fifth place despite the jump in share and encompasses Motown/Quality Control, Blue Note, Astralwerks, Capitol Christian and indie distributor Virgin Music — enjoyed the breakout success of Ice Spice (signed in conjunction with 10K Projects) in the past year as well as a top 10 Hot 100 single from Toosii.
Sixth place in current share belongs to RCA Records at 4.70%, a one-spot jump over last year when it came in with 4.65%. The label, whose market share does not include any other labels or distributors, benefited from the enduring success of SZA’s multi-Grammy nominated S.O.S. album, the third-biggest project of 2023, as well as huge hits from Doja Cat, Tate McCrae and Ateez, the latter of which landed a No. 1 album in the fourth quarter. Dropping into seventh is Columbia at 4.67% of current share, down from fourth in 2022 when it had a 6.67% share. Columbia, which includes some labels from indie distributor RED in its market share, still racked up a big hit with Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers,” which spent eight weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 this year on its way to becoming the fourth-most-streamed song of 2023 and the most-heard song on radio in the United States, according to Luminate.
In eighth, Sony Nashville jumped a half percentage point year over year to 2.32% from 1.89% last year, with a big Luke Combs album helping it rise one spot from last year’s ranking. Meanwhile, Sony’s Epic Records slipped to ninth year over year, despite boosting its current share from 2.23% in 2022 to 2.30% in 2023 and scoring a pair of big projects from Travis Scott — whose Utopia album was the seventh-biggest of 2023, according to Luminate — and Tyla with “Water,” which roared into the Hot 100’s top 10 late in the year. Rounding out the top 10 is yet another Sony label, Sony Latin, which also had a huge year, upping its current share from 1.24% in 2022 to an impressive 1.95% in 2023.
In overall market share, Republic’s dominance with newer releases lifted it to the No. 1 slot over IGA, 9.83% to 9.65%, despite the latter’s industry-leading 9.93% share of the catalog market. Atlantic, at 8.09%, sits comfortably in third, while Warner Records and Capitol Music Group are neck-and-neck in fourth and fifth, with 6.68% and 6.66% overall share, respectively, with their catalog shares tied at 6.92%. Columbia’s 6.65% catalog share is enough to lift it into sixth in overall share, ahead of RCA, with the two separated at 6.14% and 5.16%, respectively, in overall share. Epic (2.61%), Sony Nashville (2.05%) and Def Jam (1.84%) round out the overall top 10 rankings.
Among the label groups, the weight of catalog once again lifts all ships, with UMG jumping to an industry-leading 38.46% overall market share, up from 37.54% in 2022. Sony also saw an increase year over year, ending 2023 at 27.18%, up from 2022’s 26.87%, while Warner dipped slightly year over year, to 18.62% in overall share in 2023 compared to 19.05% in 2022. The indies by distribution ownership also fell, to 15.74% from 16.54% in 2022.