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30 Oct 2023

Jung Kook Just Broke a Massive Spotify Record

Jung Kook’s solo career is breaking records. The BTS superstar’s “Seven” featuring Latto became the fastest song to reach 1 billion streams in Spotify history, the streaming platform announced on Monday (Oct. 30).

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It’s been 108 days since the song was first released, and as a new member of the Spotify Billions club, the song was added to the official playlist.

This is hardly the first record Jung Kook’s Latto collaboration has broken, as it landed upon its release at No. 3 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart, published July 21, for the highest-charting debut by a solo Korean act. Additionally, “Seven,” launched at No. 1 on both the Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. charts (dated July 29). The song marked the first leader on the lists for a member of BTS as a soloist, as well as Latto’s first No. 1.

See Spotify’s announcement of Jung Kook’s accomplishment below.

30 Oct 2023

Calculate Your Streaming Payouts With This Free Tool

As part of our continuing efforts to serve the music industry and its creators, Billboard now features a royalty calculator for Spotify and Apple Music for readers.

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Created by Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, a legal and consulting firm that specializes in the music industry, the calculator is based on its analysis of U.S. data collected from direct source payers.

“Gone are the days where artists cannot fathom the value of a stream,” said Manett entertainment group leader Jordan Bromley in a statement. “Knowledge is power, data is paramount, and simple answers and insights are now available for all. This offering is just one of many coming to help every creator and rights holder understand the true value of what they own.”

The calculator is easy to use. Simply plug in the number of streams generated by a song or album, and the app will provide:

  • The total payout for that number of streams
  • The sound recording payout to the copyright owner
  • Mechanical royalties paid to the music publisher (which then pays the songwriter)
  • Performance royalties paid to performance rights organizations (PROs) ASCAP, BMI, GMR and SESAC, who in turn pay songwriters and publishers

The amount calculated will represents a blended rate of all the tiers offered by the services. So in the case of Spotify, the resulting amount calculated will be based on a blended rate from its paid tier; ad-supported tier; and other tiers; while the Apple rate is also a blend from its various tiers.

The payout totals are based on the subscriber fees that Spotify and Apple collect from subscribers each month and the numbers of plays. Because those numbers fluctuate, the calculator will be updated on a monthly basis, but usually with a three-month lag, due to when the services information becomes available.

At a glance, Apple generates higher per play rates than Spotify, but due to the latter platform’s larger subscriber base, it paid more collectively to U.S. labels and publishers in the first six months of 2023— $1.84 billion to Apple Music’s $1.68 billion, according to data supplied to Billboard by industry sources. Consequently, Spotify’s lower per play rate is due to its tiers collectively having more than twice as many plays as the combined total streams generated by the tiers in the Apple system for the first six months of 2023.

Access the royalty calculator here.

30 Oct 2023

Billboard Presents the Royalty Calculator: See What Your Streams Are Worth

As part of our continuing efforts to serve the music industry and its creators, Billboard now features a royalty calculator for Spotify and Apple Music for readers.

The calculator below was created by Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, a legal and consulting firm that specializes in music industry law; and is based on the firm’s analysis of U.S. data collected from direct source payors.

The calculator is easy to use. Simply plug in the number of streams generated by a song or album, and the app will provide:

  • The total payout for that figure number of streams
  • The sound recording payout to the copyright owner
  • Mechanical royalties paid to the music publisher (which then pays the songwriter)
  • Performance royalties paid to performance rights organizations (PROs) ASCAP, BMI, GMR and SESAC

The amount calculated will represent a blended rate of all the tiers offered by the services. So, in the case of Spotify, the rate shown is a blend of its paid tier rate, its ad-supported tier rate, and other tiers; while the Apple rate is also a blend of its various tiers.

The payout totals are based on the subscriber fees that Spotify and Apple collect from subscribers each month and the number of plays. Because those numbers fluctuate, the calculator will be updated on a monthly basis, but usually with a three-month lag, due to when the services information becomes available. Currently, the rates shown are based on reported data from June.

At a glance, Apple generates higher per play rates than Spotify, but Spotify paid more overall to labels and publishers in the first six months of 2023 because of its larger subscriber base — $1.84 billion to Apple Music’s $1.68 billion, according to data supplied to Billboard by sources. Consequently, Spotify’s lower per play rate is due to its tiers collectively having more than twice as many plays as the combined total streams generated by the tiers in the Apple system for the first six months of 2023.

28 Oct 2023

Taylor Swift Breaks Spotify Record for Most-Streamed Album in a Single Day With ‘1989 (Taylor’s Version)’

Taylor Swift has done it again. The pop star’s re-recorded 1989 album has made Spotify history in its first 24 hours of release.

Spotify announced on Saturday (Oct. 28) that 1989 (Taylor’s Version), Swift’s 21-track album that arrived on Friday, is officially the most-streamed album in a single day in the streaming service’s history.

But that’s not all. Spotify also shared that Swift has become the most-streamed artist in a single day with the release of 1989 (Taylor’s Version). With this feat, the “Cruel Summer” singer replaces herself as the most-streamed artist record holder after capturing the title with her 10th studio album, Midnights, in October 2022.

The fresh release of 1989 features newly recorded editions of all 13 original songs, plus three bonus tracks (“Wonderland,” “New Romantics” and “You Are In Love”) and five cuts from the “Vault” (“Is It Over Now?,” “Now That We Don’t Talk,” “Say Don’t Go,” “Suburban Legends” and “Slut!”).

Swift has just two more “Taylor’s Version” re-records on the docket now that 1989 has dropped. Having released Fearless (Taylor’s Version) and Red (Taylor’s Version) in 2021, along with Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) earlier this year, all that’s left are her 2006 self-titled debut and 2017’s Reputation, the last album she made while with Big Machine Records.

Swift is this year’s leading Billboard Music Awards finalist. You can watch the BBMAs on Nov. 19 on Billboard and the BBMA’s social media channels, as well as here.

See Spotify’s post about Swift’s new streaming record X (formerly Twitter) below.

26 Oct 2023

Who Is Iñigo Quintero & How Did He Reach No. 1 Globally on Spotify?

On Tuesday (Oct. 24), Iñigo Quintero’s “Si No Estás” garnered more than 5.7 million plays in just one day, an impressive amount that pushed it to the top of Spotify‘s global chart. It’s the first time a solo Spanish artist has achieved this milestone (previously Canary Islander Quevedo accomplished the feat alongside Argentina’s Bizarrap with “Bzrp Music Sessions, Vol. 52”), and it’s all the more shocking because, at least outside of Spain, Quintero was until recently a total unknown.

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The song also reached the coveted top 10 on Billboard‘s global charts, peaking at No. 4 on Billboard Global Excl. U.S. and No. 10 on Billboard Global 200. And with daily plays surpassing such popular tracks as Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers,” Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer” or Young Miko’s “Wiggy,” the meteoric rise is also enigmatic in that it has occurred without any traditional promotion, publicity, press releases or information about the artist behind the sensation. (Billboard Español requested an interview with Quintero’s representative and the response was that he is not currently talking to the company).

With verses like “Esto es una alucinación/ Quiero ver tu otra mitad/ Alejarme de esta ciudad/ Y contagiarme de tu forma de pensar” (“This is a delusion/ I want to see your other half/ Get away from this city/ And immerse in your way of thinking.”) “Si No Estás” is a piano-pop ballad that alludes to an intense obsession and longing for someone who is far away, and the anguish and pain that result from that separation — a song of unusual depth for a 2023 pop hit.



“Clearly, Iñigo’s songs are connecting with the people,” says Esteve Lombarte, founder of the Acqustic label, who represents the artist. “I think for a long time we’ve had more superficial songs focused on lives of great luxury — of cars, wealth and houses — and nowadays, there are a lot more connecting with day-to-day problems that talk about love, friendship and other issues related to people’s concerns.”

What is certain is the power of the song and its meaning, which has generated a great deal of debate on social networks. “Si No Estás” has been interpreted in different ways, from a song dedicated to God, to a reflection on a romantic breakup.

Lombarte explains that the song began to go viral organically through TikTok, and immediately connected with listeners. “From that initial boost we decided to amplify [the song],” he says. Quintero connected with the label through his other artist Besmaya, and in March 2023 they signed him.

“The truth is that the success of ‘Si No Estás’ is an unprecedented triumph in the industry, but we believe that what is behind this song is a very talented artist,” Lombarte points out. “And the rest of the songs are really doing very well too. The proof of that is that ‘Sobredosis’ is already in the top 100 in Spain, and there will be more and more songs, and we will get to know more of the artist little by little.”

He continues: “The clearest proof is that countries like France, Germany, Holland, Luxembourg, Switzerland — non-Spanish-speaking countries — have also connected with the artist beyond the lyrics. It is part of the magic of this art.”

Other projects that Aqcustic manages are Malmö 040, Besmaya, Ciao Marina, Maren, Yarea, Inazio and Hey Kid. “After this great success, what we will do is to continue working and preparing songs. The important thing is to sit down, compose and work to release music that connect as well as ‘Si No Estás’ has connected,” adds Lombarte.

Additional reporting by Franchesca Guim.

24 Oct 2023

Spotify Is Changing How It Pays Artists

Spotify is planning to implement changes to its streaming royalty model in early 2024 that would affect the lowest-streaming acts, non-music noise tracks and distributors and labels committing fraud, sources tell Billboard.

Conversations have been going on for weeks with the major record labels, Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group, as well as independent labels and distributors, sources say. While the new royalty system will keep its existing pro-rata model, it introduces new floors that will grow the pool for more established artists and rights holders.

The changes to Spotify’s royalty model, which were first reported by Music Business Worldwide, include:

  • A new threshold of minimum annual streams that a track must meet before it starts to generate royalties. The threshold, according to MBW, will de-monetize tracks that had previously received 0.5% of Spotify’s royalty pool.
  • Financial penalties for music distributors and labels when fraudulent activity on tracks they have uploaded to Spotify has been detected.
  • A minimum play-time length that non-music noise tracks, such as bird sounds or white noise, must reach to generate royalties.

The specific benchmarks of these changes and how financial penalties will be calculated or implemented are currently unclear.

Spotify will need new agreements to the royalty structure changes with most record labels and distributors to implement the plan, but that doesn’t mean entirely new licensing renewals. Changes can be made specifically for these elements, sources say. And since the major labels — which all negotiate their deal renewals with Spotify on different timelines — are likely to benefit from the new terms, they are all likely to sign onto them.

When reached for comment, a Spotify spokesperson said in a statement, “We’re always evaluating how we can best serve artists, and regularly discuss with partners ways to further platform integrity. We do not have any news to share at this time.”

The standard, existing pro-rata streaming model has been a major topic of consideration this year, ever since Universal Music Group CEO Lucian Grainge called for an “updated model” for the business that will be “an innovative, ‘artist-centric’ model that values all subscribers and rewards the music they love” in his annual New Year’s letter to staff. Following, UMG announced partnerships with Tidal, Deezer and Soundcloud to explore alternative models, and reports surfaced that similar conversations were underway with the other leading streaming platforms.

In July, during UMG’s second quarter earnings call, Grainge announced a “newly expanded agreement” with Spotify, under which he said “they have committed to continue to work to address” what he outlined as key components to the “artist-centric” approach: Fairly rewarding “real artists with real fanbases” for “the platform engagement they drive”; applying “stricter fraud detection and enforcement systems” and “ensuring real artists don’t have their royalties diluted by noise”; and “better aligning the relationship between artists and fans by promoting greater discovery and promotion of real artists.” Two out of three of these priorities are now being pursued by Spotify.

In September, UMG and Deezer outlined a new model for what they called “artist-centric streaming.” That model was similar, albeit more severe, than what Spotify is planning. It included royalty “boosts” for “professional” artists whose music streamed above a threshold, while promising to crack down on fraud and replace “non-artist noise content” with its own functional music that would be excluded from the royalty pool.

Unlike Spotify — which relies heavily on industry-leading algorithm-recommended playlists and auto-play, lean-back listening — Deezer’s plan also demoted passive listening royalties by “boosting” artists who are actively searched for by users. Unlike Deezer, Spotify is planning to roll this out will all major labels and leading independent labels and distributors.

24 Oct 2023

Spotify Turns Profit, Adds 6 Million Subscribers in Q3 Following Price Hikes and Cost Cuts

Spotify reported its first profitable quarter in more than a year on Tuesday, after subscription price hikes, lay offs and marketing budget cuts helped boost revenues and operating income for music streaming and podcasting giant.

Spotify reported revenues for the third quarter rose 11% to 3.4 billion euros ($3.6 billion), and operating income over 32 million euros ($34 million). The company beat its growth guidance on both monthly active users and subscribers, adding 23 million monthly active users, a 26% uplift, for a total of 574 million compared to the year ago period. The number of premium subscribers rose by 6 million, or 16%, to 226 million from the year ago period.

The company said that the uptick in revenue is due to the early effects of its $1 price hike on premium individual plans and a rebound in the ad market, as improving podcasting trends and lower operating expenses after January’s company-wide cost cuts helped operating income turn a 1% profit.

The company told investors they could expect total monthly active users (MAU) and premium subscribers to continue to grow for the rest of the year–by 27 million net new MAUs and 9 million new subscribers in the fourth quarter 2023–which is expected to boost total revenues by 3% and gross margin by 0.2%.

Spotify reported a free cash flow of 216 million euros for the quarter, up from 25 million euros a year ago. As of Sept. 30, the company says it employed 9,241 full time employees worldwide, down from roughly 9,800 at the end of 2022.

Spotify has been managing a reboot of its podcasting strategy this year, moving away from the hundreds of millions of dollars acquiring podcast start-up and programing under former Chief Content Officer Dawn Ostroff. Spotify now hosts over 100 million tracks, 5 million podcasts titles, and 350,000 audiobooks.

The company also benefitted from a rebound in ad-supported revenue, which rose 16% to 447 million euros ($475 million), helped by a 20% uptick in music. “Podcast advertising revenue growth
remained in the healthy double-digit range,” according to a Spotify release.

  • Monthly active users rose by 26% to 574 million, compared to the third quarter 2022, beating guidance by 2 million.
  • The number of subscribers rose by 16% to 226 million from the year ago period, also ahead of guidance by 2 million.
  • Ad-supported monthly active users rose by 32% to 361 million from the year ago period.
  • Total revenue rose 11% to 3.36 billion euros ($3.57 billion) from 3.04 billion euros ($3.2 billion).
  • Revenue from preimium subscriptions rose by 10% to 2.9 billion euros ($3.08 billion).
  • Revenue from ad supported users rose 16% to 447 million euros ($475 million).
  • Operating income was 32 million euros ($34 million), bosted by higher gross margin and lower personnel and marketing costs.
  • The company’s gross margin was 26.4%, compared to 24.7% in the third quarter 2022.

19 Oct 2023

2023 Billboard Music Awards Teams With Spotify for Reimagined Awards Show

The 2023 Billboard Music Awards (BBMAs), set for Sunday, Nov. 19, will include a first-of-its-kind collaboration with Spotify ‘Fans First’ to bring fans up-close-and-personal with their favorite artists. The BBMAs will roll out performances and awards across BBMAs and Billboard social channels, as well as via BBMAs.watch, on that date. Performances and award celebrations will take place in global locations, in the midst of sold-out tours and in custom venues.

The goal is to deliver a fresh award show concept that will entertain fans with hours of music and exclusive content, including winner celebrations, behind-the-scenes moments and performances created by the world’s biggest artists.

In addition, the BBMAs and Spotify have teamed to identify fans who have consumed the most hours of music over the past year and helped drive their favorite artist to the top spots on the Billboard charts. These fans will receive a “golden ticket” granting them access to attend a performance curated by their favorite artist, expressly for the 2023 Billboard Music Awards. Fans First is Spotify’s program that offers exclusive rewards and privileges like one-of-a-kind concerts, personal artist experiences, merch drops and first-in-line presales to an artist’s most devoted Spotify listeners.

“We’ve heard the fans loud and clear, and we’re excited to meet them where they are, and everywhere they want to consume music and content,” Maddy Mesevage, SVP, marketing, Dick Clark Productions, said in a statement. “This year’s show is an epic celebration of the fans who propelled their favorite artists to the top of the Billboard charts. To thank them, we are thrilled to work with Spotify and the artists themselves to offer their most loyal fans an experience they’ll never forget.”

Unique among music award shows, Billboard Music Awards winners are determined by year-end performance metrics on the Billboard charts, the music industry’s ultimate authority and data-driven measure of success. The eligibility dates for this year’s awards are aligned with Billboard’s Year-End Charts tracking period, which measures music consumption from the charts dated Nov. 19, 2022 through Oct. 21, 2023.

The Billboard Music Awards aired on Fox from 1990-2006, always in December. After a four-year hiatus, the show returned in 2011. It aired on ABC from 2011-17, and on NBC from 2018-22. Throughout this period, it aired in May, except for the pandemic-delayed 2020 show, which aired in October.

This year’s show will be in the thick of awards season. The Nov. 19 show will occur nine days after the Grammy nominations are announced, and just a few weeks before final-round Grammy voting begins on Dec. 14.

Finalists – the show does not use the word “nominees,” because the finalists and recipients are data-driven – and performers will be announced in the coming weeks. The 2023 Billboard Music Awards is produced by Dick Clark Productions. Lexus and Marriott Bonvoy are partners of this year’s show.

Follow the BBMAs on Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok, Threads and YouTube, join the conversation with #BBMAs and get the latest news and updates at BillboardMusicAwards.com and billboard.com/bbma.

13 Oct 2023

Bad Bunny’s ‘Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana’ Is 2023’s Most-Streamed Album in a Single Day on Spotify

Bad Bunny‘s just-released album, Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana, is already setting records. Spotify announced Friday (Oct. 13) that the project is their most-streamed album in a single day in 2023 so far.

“We all knew Bad Bunny would break records with this new album,” reads a message on Spotify’s social accounts. “Congrats Benito.”

The Puerto Rican superstar was already a force to be reckoned with on Spotify, as the most-streamed artist globally on the app for the past three years, 2020-22.

Bad Bunny released the 22-track new album — whose name translates to “Nobody Knows What Is Going to Happen Tomorrow” — first thing on Friday the 13th. It’s his fifth solo studio album, following last year’s blockbuster Un Verano Sin Ti. His 2022 album spent 13 weeks atop the Billboard 200 albums chart and topped the year-end Billboard 200 as well — the first Spanish-language album to do so.

Nadie Sabe Lo Que Va a Pasar Mañana was led by the Jersey club track “Where She Goes” back in May and then “Un Preview,” which arrived on Sept. 26. Bad Bunny performed the two songs — along with “Moscow Mule,” “Tití Me Preguntó,” “Neverita” and “Me Porto Bonito” — in a medley at the 2023 Billboard Latin Music Awards on Oct. 5 ahead of the album’s release. Benito also took home seven awards for the night, including artist of the year, tour of the year and Global 200 Latin artist of the year.

See Spotify’s announcement below:

03 Oct 2023

Spotify to Give Subscribers 15 Hours of Audiobook Access Per Month

Spotify is giving subscribers in some of the company’s largest markets up to 15 hours of listening time per month to a library of more than 150,000 audiobooks, the company announced Tuesday (Oct. 3).

Audiobook access is available to premium individual subscribers as well as the primary account holders for family and Duo accounts (a family account allows up to six subscribers, while Duo accounts are meant for two). Premium users in the United Kingdom and Australia will start receiving the allotment of audiobook listening tomorrow (Oct. 4) and U.S. subscribers will gain access later this year. Listeners who need more time at the end of the month can purchase 10 additional hours for an undisclosed amount.

Spotify says its audiobook catalog covers 70% of bestselling books from such major publishers as Hachette, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan, Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster and RB Media. It also includes independent authors and publishers such as Bolinda, Dreamscape and Pushkin.

Spotify users can expect to find personalized audiobook recommendations throughout the app. “Our personalized Home feed is certainly one of those and will serve up recommendations based on what you like, as well as some suggestions for your next favorite book; while if you already know what you want, then you can just type it into Search,” said Owen Smith, Spotify’s head of audiobooks product and tech, in a blog post announcing the news. “Then with Browse you’ll find some of our editorial booklists, where we will help you explore the huge catalog available. For example, we will take a genre like mysteries and serve up a curated selection so you can find just the right mystery book for you. “

Audiobooks are part of Spotify’s plan to improve its margins and expand beyond its origins as a music-only platform. The company has placed major bets on podcasts, spending handsomely to acquire exclusive rights to The Joe Rogan Experience and Call Her Daddy as well as partnering with former first couple Barack and Michelle Obama, among others. Spotify said at its July 2022 investor day presentation that it expected podcast gross margins to improve from -57% last year to 30-35% within three to five years.

Even though Spotify has carried audiobooks since Sept. 2022 — a result of its 117 million euro ($122 million) acquisition of audiobook distributor Findaway — the titles have not been available for streaming. Instead, users have been required to purchase the titles in order to listen to them on the Spotify app. While subscribers can now start streaming audiobooks, those titles will still be available for purchase on the platform.