NEW YORK CITY– Midway with 2025, a few music trends have actually come to be clear, according to Luminate’s 2025 Midyear Record, which was released Wednesday:
— In the united state and internationally, even more songs is being streamed than in the past …
— However development has actually slowed down.
— And in the united state particularly, there’s been a renewal in Christian songs and “economic downturn pop.”
In its midyear record, Luminate, a sector information and analytics business, gives understanding right into altering actions throughout songs listenership.
Songs streams remained to expand internationally and stateside in the initial fifty percent of 2025. International on-demand sound streams got to 2.5 trillion in the initial fifty percent of 2025– up from 2.29 trillion in the same period last year.
And in the united state, on-demand sound streams expanded to 696.6 billion in 2025, contrasted to 665.8 billion in 2024.
However despite the fact that even more songs is being streamed than in the past, contrasted to previous years, the price of development is reducing. In 2024, united state and worldwide on-demand sound streams expanded 8% and 15.1%, specifically. In 2025, those numbers have actually gone down to 4.6% and 10.3%.
In the united state, streaming represent 92% of all songs intake. On-demand streams were up in 2025 as physical and electronic cd sales went down.
R&& B/hip-hop continues to be one of the most preferred category in regards to on-demand audio streaming quantity, complied with by rock, pop, nation and Latin. The very same held true in 2024. What’s fascinating are the highest-growth categories: Rock leads stateside, complied with by Latin, nation, and Christian/gospel songs.
Though streams of brand-new songs– songs launched in the last 18 months– are a little below the very same time in 2015, brand-new Christian/gospel songs has actually resisted that pattern, stated Jaime Marconette, Luminate’s vice head of state of songs understandings and sector connections. It is led by imitate Forrest Frank, Brandon Lake and Elevation Worship.
He associated the category’s development to “more youthful, streaming-forward fanbase,” which is 60% lady and 30% millennial.
” Economic crisis pop”– the term for positive hits like Kesha’s “Tik Tok,” Miley Cyrus’ “Event in the U.S.A.” and various other care free popular song that arised in 2007-2012 around the moment of the Great Recession— has actually likewise seen a dive this year. Luminate discovered that united state on-demand sound streams of popular song from that age have actually enhanced 6.4% in 2025. Tunes from Cyrus, Bruno Mars, Woman Gaga and Rihanna lead the change.
” We’re really seeing popular song from those years exceed the development of the sector at-large,” includes Marconette. “When taking a look at efficiency of all categories from that duration, audiences are inclining appear specific, highlighting a feeling of fond memories and possibly bigger themes of escapism.”
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