IFPI releases ‘Engaging with Music 2021’, a comprehensive report that explores the ways that people listen to, discover and engage with music around the world

Today, IFPI, the organization representing recorded music worldwide, released Engaging with Music 2021, a comprehensive report that explores the ways that people listen to, discover and engage with music around the world. Based on research conducted by IFPI across 21 of the world’s leading music markets, including Canada, the report is a global snapshot of music engagement in 2021. 

Engagement with streaming – particularly subscription audio streaming – continues to grow and is the most popular form of music consumption around the world. More than three-quarters of people (78%) said they listen to music through licensed audio streaming services (subscription and ad-supported). Globally, there was strong growth (51%) in time spent listening to music on subscription audio streaming services, reinforcing the strong attraction of streaming to music fans. Audio streaming services (paid and free models) made up the largest share of music listening for consumers in Canada and around the globe.

This rapid growth in streaming engagement is evident in Canada’s music marketplace. Last week, Music Canada was proud to present a panel on Canadian Music Data in 2021, as part of Canadian Music Week’s Virtual Voices Series. The panel highlighted that Canada’s music market is reaching a new major milestone. Canadians will soon stream 2 billion songs in a single week – a benchmark that reflects how much we all love and value music. The fact that these streams all come from licensed services reaffirms that there is a strong market for recorded music in Canada where creators are paid when their music is played. This rapid growth in the streaming marketplace is a Canadian success story. Record companies’ ongoing work and investments in artists, technology, infrastructure and staff have laid the foundations for the success in the digital marketplace today. 

IFPI’s Engaging With Music study paints a rich and diverse picture of the music engagement landscape today. Music plays an important role on short form video platforms like TikTok, where 68% of the time respondents spent on these apps involved music-dependent videos such as lip syncing and dance challenges.  The report also highlights music’s long standing relationship with gaming. 31% of gamers have attended a virtual concert on platforms like Fortnite, Roblox, or Minecraft.

The full Engaging with Music 2021 report is now available on IFPI’s website. An accompanying infographic illustrating key takeaways from the report is also available here.