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Taylor Swift's The Life of a Showgirl smashes records
Taylor Swift made the biggest album debut of her career with her new album The Life of a Showgirl. Despite the album garnering mixed reviews, ranging from the not-so glamorous two stars to the showstopping five stars, the album sold 2.7 million copies within the first 24 hours and broke Spotify records within the first 24 hours of its release. This already marks Swift’s biggest week of sales just after one day, and the second-largest sales week for any album since the company Luminate began tracking the data in 1991. It only trails behind Adele’s 2015 album 25, which sold 3.4 million copies in its first week. The pop superstar also broke her own vinyl sales record set by her 2024 album, The Tortured Poets Department, with 1.2 million U.S. sales in a single week. If the album takes the top spot in the Billboard 200 Albums chart, it will be her 15th to do so, putting her second only to the Beatles on the all-time list. Spotify have also confirmed it to be the most-streamed album on the platform in a single day, with the opening track and leading single The Fate of Ohpelia becoming the most-streamed song in a single day on Spotify. Alongside the album, Swift also released a 90-minute movie for cinema screening for h
Music
UMG music publishing grows, sees fall in merchandising
Universal Music Group saw revenue gains of 1.6% year-on-year to €2.98 billion in Q2 2025. The majority of this growth was in the recorded music and music publishing segments, driven by large acts signed by the label like Morgan Wallen, Sabrina Carpenter and Lady Gaga, who were top sellers for the quarter. Recorded music revenue grew 1.1% year-over-year, and music publishing grew 11.5%. The strong [publishing] growth also reflects the Chord [Music Partners] administration business, as well as our continued success in growing our film and TV administration business,” UMG’s COO, Boyd Muir, said. The music label also saw growth in recorded music subscription revenue by 5.3% year-over-year, and streaming revenue increased 4.4%. While these areas grew, merchandising and other revenue saw a decline of 15.4% from the same period last year. Adjusted EBITDA also grew this quarter by 4.2% to €676 million. "The breadth and diversity of our business has positioned us to deliver solid growth in revenue and Adjusted EBITDA again this quarter,” Muir said. “We remain confident in our growth trajectory as we continue to invest with a focus on maximising long-term value and driving attractive returns in the coming years."
Music
ARIA revamps charts to boost Australia's music industry
The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) will alter its charts in a bid to encourage new music consumption and bolster Australia’s music industry. ARIA’s Singles and Albums charts will now exclusively host music released within the last two years, effective from 1 September. A new set of charts, known as On Replay, will focus on music released earlier. “These updates ensure the ARIA Charts continue to evolve in step with the listening habits of Australian music fans. We’re creating clear space to spotlight exciting new music while recognising the lasting impact and relevance of timeless classics through our ARIA On Replay Charts,” said ARIA CEO Annabelle Herd. “Our aim is to support the discovery and celebration of great Australian music at every stage of its life.” Older music will be allowed to enter ARIA’s main charts upon record labels’ request if the song or album has not appeared in the Top 100 for at least 10 years and has received enough engagement for a placement in the Top 30. Music eligible under these provisions may remain on the charts for 10 weeks. These rules will also apply to ARIA’s Australian Artist Singles and Album charts. The changes have taken public and music industry feedback into
Music
New funding to revive Australia's live music scene
Money is being injected into the Australian music scene to keep it alive through multiple funding programs. Two of the major funds at the moment are the Contemporary Music Fund by the NSW Government and the Australian Governments Revive Live program. The Contemporary Music Fund has recently allocated a combined A$2.25 million emergency funding to Bluesfest in Byron Bay, Lost Paradise on the Central Coast, Your and Owls in Wollongong, Listen Out and Field Day in Sydney. The fund is in response to a slew of cancelled festivals including Splendour in the Grass, Falls Festival, Spilt Milk and Groovin’ the Moo. “The post covid era has been a financial nightmare for music festivals in NSW,” Music and Night-time Economy Minister John Graham said. “The government needed to step in to save the furniture, and the feedback is that this fund has helped some of these festivals survive.” The NSW government hopes that injecting $500,000 into each festival will encourage people to buy more tickets, help local regional economies, and keep the Australian music industry alive. “We can’t afford to lose that cultural experience because the festivals can’t afford to pay their rising bills,” Graham said. “The festival circuit is
Music
More than half of Coachella goers use buy now pay later
As ticket prices continue to soar, festival goers are opting for ‘buy now pay later’ (BNPL) plans to afford Coachella tickets. This year Billboard reported that around 60% of the estimated 80,000 plus Coahcella attendees in 2025 chose BNPL options in comparison to 18% in 2018. The festivals BNPL plans work a little different to popular providers like Klarna. Unlike Klarna who charge interest to those who fail to make payments on time, the festivals system requires an extra US$41 flat fee to use, cancels orders if payments are missed and issues credits that can be used for next year’s edition. This year, it was reported that Coachella tickets have risen to US$649 for the three day general admission pass, in comparison to the US$429 it cost in 2020 and US$375 in 2015. Experts have warned that the BNPL options for festivals may not be entirely safe. “The issue is that more flexibility also gives more opportunities to overspend,” Wesley Yin, a professor of economics at the University of California, Los Angeles, told Observer. “It really requires a lot of personal awareness of finances and spending, and that’s not always easy for the typical consumer.” BNPL providers don’t always require credit checks and a 2023 su

Music
Give it away now: why musicians sell their catalogues
Catalogue sales may be the music industry’s new #1 hit, as artists now offer the rights to their songs for hundreds of millions of dollars. Many of the world’s most well-known musicians have sold their catalogues in recent years, including Bob Dylan, Justin Timberlake, and Katy Perry. But while a wide variety of artists are now moving to sell, these deals are often more complex than they appear, and buyers are still working to rebound from a rocky 2024.What’s going on?The current boom in major catalogue acquisitions started in 2018. In July of that year, music investment company Hipgnosis purchased a 75% share in the rights to songwriter The-Dream’s portfolio for US$23 million, which includes songs from artists like Beyoncé and Rihanna. Hipgnosis had raised US$260 million for catalogue acquisitions at that time, and had just launched on the London Stock Exchange. Primary Wave, a music publishing company, acquired Bob Marley's catalogue rights for $50 million shortly afterwards. More recently, HarbourView Equity Partners purchased T-Pain’s publishing catalogue and partial master rights for an undisclosed amount in February. The most lucrative catalogue so far is Queen's, acquired by Sony Music Publishing last June for U
Music
Brand on the run: Making big bucks in the music industry
Every musical artist dreams of reaching the heights of iconic bands like AC/DC, The Rolling Stones and The Beatles, but this can rarely be sustained on music alone. In order to make money in the music industry, artists must diversify their income. The president of the International Music Business Research Association, Dr Guy Morrow said there are five key income stream groups for artists. These revenue streams are recorded music, live performances, income, merchandise, song publishing and sponsorship. The key reason Morrow believes artists need to diversify their income for sustainability. “Having a diverse way of looking at revenue across a music artist career will quite often change which of these income stream groups is really meaningful to them at a particular point in an artist's career,” he tells Azzet. While the music industry has changed, Morrow says there is plenty to learn from the past and bring to the present. What brings in the most revenue? Morrow says revenue streams for artists have changed over time. This is partially due to talent managers' changing role. Morrow says in the 90s through to the 2000s they tended to have a bigger hand in artists' deals but now artists gravitate towards mor
Music
Music revenue hits $29.6bn in 2024, buoyed by streaming
Global music revenue grew by 4.8% in 2024 to reach US$29.6 billion, as streaming surges worldwide. Revenue rose in every region for the third consecutive year, according to a report by IFPI, with subscription streaming revenue representing more than 50% of recorded music revenue globally. “While we are supportive of technological change that helps bring music to fans everywhere around the world it only seems reasonable that artists be paid appropriately for their endeavours. In true partnerships based on mutual respect we can all build an exciting vision for the future of our artists and our industry,” said Sony Music Group chair Rob Stringer. Streaming revenue’s growth rate was higher than any other format, and reached a new record of US$20.4 billion last year. Subscription-based revenue grew by 9.5%, while ad-supported streaming revenue increased by 1.2%. The number of paid subscribers to streaming services rose by 10.6% worldwide, and is now 752 million. Physical revenue fell by 3.1% to US$4.8 billion, after seeing an increase of 14.5% in 2023. Vinyl revenues rose for the 18th consecutive year, while CD and music revenues both declined. Performance rights revenues rose by 5.9% to US$2.9 billion, and now amou
Music
Kate Bush and more protest UK AI law with silent album
More than 1,000 prominent British musicians have released a silent album to protest the United Kingdom’s proposed changes to artificial intelligence and copyright laws. The album, called Is This What We Want?, features artists like Kate Bush, The Clash, Hans Zimmer, and Annie Lennox. The U.K. government has proposed a policy that would let AI models be trained on copyrighted works, with consultation ending last week. “The U.K. is full of pioneering, highly creative and imaginative artists. The government's willingness to agree to these copyright changes shows how much our work is undervalued and that there is no protection for one of this country's most important assets: music,” said Bush. The government’s proposal “is a plan that would not only be disastrous for musicians, but that is totally unnecessary: the U.K. can be leaders in AI without throwing our world-leading creative industries under the bus,” said Ed Newton-Rex, organiser of the project and head of the non-profit Fairly Trained. Fairly Trained certifies AI companies that do not use copyrighted material without permission. Under the U.K. government’s proposal, artists could choose to withdraw their copyrighted work from use in AI training. The government sa