Stat of the week
MBW presents a series that emphasizes a data point warranting global music industry attention. This week’s highlight is brought to you by the analytical firm Music Data Chartmetric.
Impact of TikTok on the Music Industry
As TikTok confronts the potential repercussions of US law regarding “sampling,” it is enhancing its initiatives to showcase its value to the music sector.
In December, during its year-end music report for 2024, TikTok indicated that 13 out of 16 tracks that reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 last year had some affiliation with TikTok trends.
The platform has now issued its second annual Music Impact report, developed in collaboration with Market Monitor Luminate. This report details the profound connection TikTok has achieved with the commercial success of music. You can read the full report here.
Notable statistics include that 84% of songs that entered the Billboard Global 200 last year initially went viral on TikTok. Furthermore, another 12% became viral on the platform after making it to the global 200 chart, while only 4% tracks on the chart did not experience any viral moment on TikTok.
A significant caveat: to compare virality on TikTok with the Global 200, the report did not solely focus on 2024; it analyzed the period from December 29, 2023, to September 26, 2024 (weeks 1 to 39 of the chart).
The Billboard Global 200 ranks the most popular songs worldwide based on streaming and sales data across 200 territories globally.
Commenting on the report’s insights, TikTok’s global music lead Ole Obermann stated, “The role of TikTok as a catalyst for music discovery and artist success is widely recognized.”
“Nonetheless, the Luminate report delves deeper into the numerous ways TikTok and its vibrant community of discerning music fans contribute to increased revenue, chart success, and added value for artists and the music industry,” he emphasized.
Obermann highlighted that TikTok’s Add to Music App feature, introduced last year, has already amassed over 1 billion saves.
This functionality enables TikTok users to save songs encountered on the app directly to playlists in various streaming services, including Amazon Music, Apple Music, and Spotify.
“Artists can expect an average of a 11% increase in on-demand music streaming within three days after peak views on TikTok,” the music impact report for 2024 indicates. “Total TikTok views are linked to streaming volumes for 96% of artists within this analysis.”
Regarding streaming impact, the report also discovered that TikTok users in the U.S. are 68% more likely to have a paid music streaming subscription compared to the general U.S. population.
“In fact, nearly two-thirds of music listeners on TikTok are subscribers to at least one music streaming service,” the report highlights.
The report also underscored TikTok’s role in facilitating interactions among superfans of music, although it defines superfans differently than conventional definitions used by music companies and analysts.
Typically, superfans are identified by their spending on music; however, TikTok’s report classifies them as “those who engage with musical artists in five or more unique ways.”
Based on this definition, “U.S. TikTok users are identified as superfans at almost double the rate: 27% of all U.S. TikTok users are music superfans, compared to just 15% in the broader U.S. population,” the report states.
Additionally, the report indicates that even when assessing superfans based on their expenditure, TikTok is a significant draw for this group of music listeners.
“U.S. TikTok users spend 46% more on music monthly than the average U.S. listener,” the findings declare. “In addition to subscriptions to streaming services, nearly a third of U.S. TikTok users purchased music in physical formats, such as CDs or vinyl last year.”
The report further noted that U.S. TikTok users spend 10% more on physical music compared to the average American listener. Additionally, there is a strong correlation with live music consumption, where TikTok users spend 52% more on live music events and 62% more on artist merchandise compared to the average listener.
Specific case studies within the report identify artists Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter as having significantly benefited from TikTok virality in 2024.
The TikTok report includes a graphic comparing its platform views with the streaming data of 1990s rock band Korn, showcasing a clear correlation where TikTok trends lead to increased on-demand streaming. This graphic can be viewed below:
“TikTok collaborated with the Luminate Insights team to gain a deeper understanding of TikTok fans’ influence within the wider music ecosystem,” explained Nick Lansafay, Vice President and head of Luminate Research.
“By analyzing proprietary TikTok data alongside global music data from Luminate, the report presents a thorough and reliable perspective on TikTok’s role in the broader music ecosystem, highlighting its influence on music discovery, artist performance, and contributions to the music industry by its unique users.”
The report examined 677 artists achieving at least 5 million streams in Q3 2024, including artists who may have had lower streams at the start of the year.
On-demand streams were measured globally, excluding China, Cuba, India, North Korea, and Syria.
Artists primarily focused on genres deemed “not TikTok’s main direction” — including Bollywood, children’s music, Christian, classical, gospel, jazz, ambient, new age, original TV/film soundtracks, and audio for relaxation — were also excluded.
Chartmetric is your all-in-one platform for artists and music industry professionals, offering comprehensive streaming, social data, and audience insights to help build a successful career in music.
