A new study from music research and analytics platform Viberate has suggested that TikTok will “reshape the music business” in 2022.
To complement the swirl of predictions for the music industry at the beginning of the year, Viberate has used data from 2021 to map out the next 12 months. The music research and analytics platform has analysed a significant amount of data (more than a trillion data points, thousands of artists and playlists, millions of tracks and videos and hundreds of festivals) gathered from key social media and music channels, including Spotify, TikTok, Instagram, Beatport and radio.
The resulting State Of Music report presents a breakdown of who and what is popular on the relevant channels, as well as offering other valuable insights for music professionals. For example, the report states that only the top 1% of analysed artists rule all the engagement numbers on social media and music channels. This means that the artists in the long tail of streaming and social media have to invent solid promotional strategies if they wish to break through – and Tik Tok can play an important role in doing so.
According to Viberate data, some of the trends that will define the music business in 2022 are: multilingual music going more mainstream, personalisation will come to the forefront, TikTok will act as a career launchpad, short videos gaining power, and further blending of genres. Below is a short explanation of each of the five trends (for the full list, click here).
1. Multilingual artists will go more mainstream. South Korean sensation BTS made it onto Viberate’s Top 5 list on almost every channel, while YouTube saw a huge rise in the popularity of Asian Pop and Latin genres, especially Reggaeton. Unlike radio or TV, online music channels have few to no gatekeepers, thus pushing non-English music into the mainstream.
2. ‘Personalised everything’ will drive artistic success. This means that labels, artists and other professionals will benefit from fan-first approaches to their promotion, merch and distribution. Personalised experiences also go hand-in-hand with securing digital revenue such as tipping, NFTs or paid subscriptions.
3. TikTok will act as a career launchpad. Not only was TikTok the most visited website in 2021, it also helped artists like Tokischa, Will Paquin and Crawlers break through and boost their streaming numbers. In a way, Spotify ‘seals the deal’ – the artists who transform a TikTok hit into solid streams are the ones with real potential. We can therefore expect more talent discovery and promotional efforts to focus on TikTok and social media.
4. Short videos will rule. Easily digestible formats such as TikTok videos will be the most useful promotional format for artists to stand out and get discovered. As audiences celebrate the DIY approach, content will be more important than production value.
5. Genre lines will blur further. Rising and breakthrough acts such as PinkPantheress prove genre blending is more popular than ever. Artists and their audiences prefer moods to traditional genre labels, with the trend extending to popular streaming playlists for specific occasions (driving, studying, relaxing). For example, Spotify’s Songs To Sing In The Shower playlist has an impressive 6.4 million followers.
See Viberate’s State Of Music address for the full list of trends, best-performing artists and music tastes of 2021.
