The US Latin music market grew 23% in first half of 2022 with streaming accounting for 97% of this market according to the RIAA, the US recording industry association. During this period revenues from Latin music in the US grew to $510 million and represents 6.6% of the total US music market.
Paid music subscriptions made up the majority of Latin revenues, growing 25% to $350 million and accounting for 71% of streaming revenues (69% of overall Latin revenues). The number of paid subscriptions reached a record 90 million 1H 2022 average.
Ad-supported on-demand streams (from services like YouTube, Vevo, and the free version of Spotify) grew 39% to $112 million, continuing the recovery from last year which was compared to 2020 when Covid-19 had a broad impact.
Digital and customized radio services (such as Pandora, SiriusXM, and internet radio services) were the only streaming format where Latin revenues declined, down 14% versus the prior year
Physical formats of Latin music continued their rebound in 1H 2022, although they make up less than 2% of revenues. Vinyl albums more than doubled (off a small base) to $6 million in 1H 2022, and CDs grew 21% to $1.4 million. Permanent downloads continued to fall with revenues down 14% to $6 million in 1H 2022, making up just 1% of Latin music revenues.
Michele Ballantyne, RIAA Chief Operating Officer said, “Latin music continues to flourish with 23% growth over the first half of 2022, outpacing overall recorded music revenues and reaching an all-time high in share.”
Josh Friedlander, RIAA Senior Vice President, Research and Economics added, “U.S. Latin revenue rose to more than half a billion dollars during the first half of 2022. “Once again, streaming remains king in the Latin segment of the U.S. market, driving a remarkable 97% of total revenues. Both of the largest streaming categories – paid subscriptions and on-demand ad-supported streaming – as well as CDs and the rejuvenated vinyl format, grew for Latin music over this period.”
The full report can be downloaded in English here and in Spanish here.
