“Indie” releases accounted for almost 30% of UK music consumption last year

Independently released songs and albums accounted for almost a third of all music consumption in the UK last year, marking the sixth consecutive year of growth for the country's indie sector, according to new figures from trade body BPI.

In total, the equivalent of more than 53 million independently released albums were streamed or purchased in 2023 across digital and physical formats, representing 29.2% of total UK music consumption. 30% over the figure seen in 2017, when India accounted for just over a fifth (22.1%) of music consumption.

The rise in popularity of physical formats has helped drive growth across the indie sector, with almost four in 10 vinyl LPs (39%) and just under a third of CDs (33%) bought by UK fans last year having released by artists signed to or distributed by an independent label, BPI reports.

Arlo Parks, Kylie Minogue, Enter Shikari, The Prodigy and homegrown rappers Dave and AJ Tracey were among the UK's most popular indie acts in digital and physical formats, along with recent UK multi-award winning singer-songwriter Raye. whose single 'Escapism' featuring 070 Shake was one of the UK's biggest hits last year with 142 million streams.

However, there are certain conditions that need to be considered when analyzing the apparent growth of the UK independent market. BPI's sector analysis is based on data and the Official Charts Corporation's (OCC) definitions of what counts as an independent publication. Essentially, this means that any album or song not attributed to the big three — Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group — in the OCC database.

However, in addition to fully independent or self-released records, this broad classification includes some “indie” albums and songs distributed by major labels such as Sony-owned The Orchard or Warner's ADA. Raye, for example, is distributed by Sony-owned independent distributor Human Re Sources. The BPI said it was unable to provide a more detailed breakdown of indie music consumption.

According to the London-based trade body, nearly 400 indie singles and albums will achieve BRIT-certified platinum, gold or silver sales status by 2023. (Platinum status in the UK is awarded for album-equivalent sales — representing the combined consumption in various formats — over 600,000 units for singles and over 300,000 units for albums, with gold and silver awards having progressively lower thresholds.)

In terms of vinyl releases, more than 200 indie titles sold more than 1,500 copies last year, including albums by alternative rock band Bdrmm and R&B singer Jorja Smith.

“It's great to see independents flourishing, and not just the most famous labels and their artists, but also a dynamic and entrepreneurial community of much smaller micro-labels and artists who are redefining the industry and who, with support, can drive further growth “, he said Femi Olasehindefounder of UK indie imprint Just Another Label and independent representative of the BPI Board, in a statement.

Total UK recorded music revenue — which includes digital and physical revenue from majors and indie labels, public performance rights and synchronization — rose 8.1% to 1.43 billion pounds ($1.8 billion) in 2023 , according to the BPI earlier this year. This is the highest number ever achieved in the UK in one year, unadjusted for inflation, helping to maintain the UK's long-standing position as the world's third largest recorded music market in the IFPI's annual ranking behind the United States and Japan.

The BPI's latest figures for the independent sector come from 'All About The Music 2024', the 45th edition of its yearbook measuring the state of the UK recorded music industry, published on Tuesday (April 16).

The BPI analysis includes recent statistics on the UK vinyl market, which is set to rise 18.6% to £142m ($181m) in 2023, marking the 16th consecutive year of growth.

The BPI said the growing popularity of pop releases had helped boost vinyl revenue, with the genre accounting for almost a quarter (23.7%) of UK vinyl sales, up from 19.6% the previous year , due to the big selling albums of Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo and Lewis Capaldi.

Hip hop/rap also increased its share of the vinyl market to 5.3% in 2023, led by the reissue of De La Soul's 1989 debut. 3 feet tall and risingalthough rock remained comfortably the largest genre among vinyl fans with a commanding 55% market share.