While the U.S. music industry continues to dominate global markets, recent data reveals a significant slowdown in growth as revenues reached $5.59 billion in the first half of 2025, representing a modest 0.9% year-on-year increase. Total U.S. music revenues surpassed $5.6 billion in early 2025, with streaming services accounting for approximately 84% of all recorded music revenue, cementing digital consumption as the industry’s backbone.
The streaming landscape shows mixed signals, with paid subscriptions growing 6.3% to $2.89 billion in H1 2025, reflecting sustained consumer willingness to invest in premium music access. The milestone of over 105 million paid streaming subscribers marks a significant achievement for the industry, up from 99 million in early 2024. This acceleration is particularly notable as it represents 6.3 million new subscriptions compared to just 2.5 million additions in the previous year.
Despite slowing overall growth, premium streaming subscriptions continue to thrive, demonstrating consumers’ enduring commitment to on-demand music.
However, free ad-supported streaming revenues declined by 2.9% to $875.1 million, suggesting shifts in either listener behavior or advertising market dynamics. The RIAA has recently changed to wholesale reporting to better align with international standards and facilitate clearer cross-market comparisons. Artists looking to capitalize on streaming success are increasingly utilizing promotional tools available through platform-specific artist portals to gain visibility and analytics insights.
Physical format revenues present an interesting dichotomy in the digital age. While overall physical sales continue their expected decline, vinyl records have outsold CDs for the fifth consecutive year, growing by 4.6% globally in 2024. This renaissance of analog formats amid digital dominance demonstrates the enduring appeal of tangible music ownership among collectors and audiophiles. Independent artists are finding particular success on platforms like Bandcamp’s marketplace, where physical merchandise and direct fan support create alternative revenue streams beyond streaming royalties.
The broader industry trajectory shows clear signs of market maturation. Streaming service revenue growth slowed to 2.3% in 2025 from 3.8% in 2024, indicating the U.S. market may be approaching saturation. This contrasts sharply with the robust 7.7% overall industry growth recorded in 2023, pointing to a plateau phase in what has been a remarkable digital transformation.
Music publishing and live performances continue to outpace recorded music growth, with publishing revenues up nearly 10% in 2023, driven primarily by performance rights and royalties. As the recorded music segment experiences cooling growth, these adjacent sectors may become increasingly important revenue streams for the overall music ecosystem, providing diversification in an industry reaching digital maturity.
