Latin Music Generated $627 Million In US Recorded Music Revenues In H1 2023, A 14.8% Increase

In the first half of the year, Latin music made $627 million in gross income in the United States.

That’s the headline figure from the Recording Industry Association of America’s (RIAA) Mid-Year 2023 Latin Music Report, which was released on Wednesday (September 27) and shows that Latin music revenues in the United States increased 14.8% year on year in H1 (money spent on streaming subscriptions, as well as physical and digital music).

The share of total US recorded music revenues attributed to Latin music increased from 7.1% in the first half of 2022 to a new high of 7.5% in the first half of 2023.

As previously reported, the total US recorded music industry generated USD $8.4 billion in gross revenues in the first six months of 2023, a 9.3% increase year on year.

The RIAA notes that its Latin music reports now include revenue from social media platforms such as Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts, and that as a result, it has amended its figures for 2022 to reflect these sources “in addition to other revisions.”

Even after accounting for these modifications, US Latin music revenues increased by $81 million year on year in the first half of 2023, putting them on track to increase by more than $150 million year on year for the entire calendar year.

These new H1 Latin Music numbers for 2023 follow a year (2022) in which Latin music reached $1 billion in recorded music revenue in the United States for the first time (and claimed an 8% market share of streaming income).

FORMATS FOR STREAMING
Streaming continued to fuel a majority of the increase in the recorded music market for Latin artists in the United States, accounting for 98% of total revenues, thanks to the sustained global streaming success of Latin Music stars like Bad Bunny and Peso Pluma.

According to recent RIAA data, paid subscriptions accounted for more than two-thirds of all Latin music earnings in the United States in H1, growing 23% year on year to $431.4 million.

Through the first six months of 2023, the average number of subscriptions across all genres in the United States was 95.8 million, up 5.8 million year on year (compared to 90 million in H1 2022).

(These subscription account counts, according to the RIAA, exclude ‘limited-tier’ services and count multi-user plans as a single subscription.)

Ad-supported on-demand music streaming earnings (from sites such as YouTube, the free version of Spotify, and social media platforms) continued to account for a higher percentage of Latin music revenues (23%) than for all US recorded music (10%).

However, ad-supported on-demand Latin Music revenues were down 0.2% year on year, hitting $147.6 million in H1, reflecting “broader economic challenges in the advertising market,” according to the RIAA.

Revenues from digital and customized radio services (such as Pandora, SiriusXM, and internet radio services) increased 13% year on year to $36 million, reversing a 5% decline in 2022 and accounting for 6% of overall Latin music revenues.

Similarly, after increasing in 2022, the physical market for Latin music (including vinyl LPs, CDs, and other physical forms) plummeted 37.1% YoY in H1 to $4.7 million, compared to $7.4 million in H1 2022 (see below).

Revenue from Latin music vinyl albums plummeted 41.1% year on year to $3.6 million in H1 2023, from $6 million in H1 2022.

In the broader US market, sales from physical music formats hit $882 million in H1, up 5% year on year.

Vinyl record revenue increased 1% year on year, or $9.8 million, to $632.4 million, accounting for 72% of total physical format income.

“US LATIN MUSIC REVENUES REACHED AN ALL-TIME HIGH IN 2022, AND THE GROWTH HAS CONTINUED MID-YEAR INTO 2023.” JR. RAFAEL FERNANDEZ, RIAA

Rafael Fernandez, Jr., RIAA SVP, State Public Policy & Industry Relations, commented on the new Latin Music Mid Year Report, saying, “US Latin music revenues reached an all-time high in 2022, and the growth has continued mid-year into 2023.”

“This has been driven by both the vitality of classic hits and chart-topping new releases that have influenced broader culture and society,” Fernandez added.

“This sustained passion for Latin music was at the heart of this year’s RIAA Honors, which celebrated Icon Gloria Estefan and Artist of the Year Sebastián Yatra, alongside policymakers and executives who came together to tell an All-American story about the power of diversity and new voices in music, politics and communities across the country.”

Latin Music Generated $627 Million In US Recorded Music Revenues In H1 2023, A 14.8% Increase

In the first half of the year, Latin music made $627 million in gross income in the United States.

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