Latin music revenues exceed $1 billion for the second year in a row

Latin music revenue in the United States continues to reach an all-time high, surpassing the $1 billion mark for the second year in a row on the back of 16% growth that outpaced the overall market.

According to the RIAA's year-end Latin music report for 2023, total revenue increased from $1.1 billion in 2022 to $1.4 billion in 2023, with the genre's overall share of the overall music market growing from 7.3% in 2021 to 7.9%. In 2021, revenue reached $881 million with a total share of 5.9%.

“Latin music has exploded in the U.S. over the past decade as a new generation of stars bolsters the genre, and streaming puts this dynamic sector in everyone's hands,” says Rafael Fernandez Jr., RIAA senior vice president of public policy and Latin music. “No longer limited by language, access or outdated assumptions – Latin artists are shaping our culture as fans are drawn to the spirit of this music, driving faster growth than any other listening and expanding our horizons every year.”

Months earlier, the RIAA's interim report had already indicated that Latin music revenues would reach a record high, thanks to the success of not only Karol G — who made history last year with Mañana Será Bonito — but also a new wave of Mexican musical acts such as Peso Pluma, Fuerza Regida and Eslabon Armado who also helped usher in a record year for local Mexican music.

“At the same time, there are opportunities for more fans to subscribe to paid streaming services and for Latin vinyl sales to climb even higher, finding different ways to connect and inspire memorable moments together as artists and labels deliver new sounds and songs.” adds Fernandez Jr.

Streaming accounts for a staggering 98% of Latin music revenue, accounting for more than $1.3 billion, up 17% from 2022. Within this, paid subscriptions were the biggest driver of growth, contributing more than two third of the total revenue and increasing by 21%. to 915 million dollars. last year, total earnings from streaming were $758 million.

Another big contributor to the growth was ad-supported on-demand streams (from services like YouTube, Vevo and the free version of Spotify), underscoring how important video is to Latino fans. Revenue from this space rose 10% to $336 million.

Revenue from digital services such as Pandora and SiriusXM rose 5% to 77 million, making up 6% of streaming earnings for Latin music. In contrast, permanent downloads accounted for just 1% of revenue for Latin music in 2023, down 15% from the previous year to $10 million, comparable to a 12% decline for digital downloads in the market as a whole.

Although physical sales rose slightly in 2022, this time CDs fell 49% to $2 million, while vinyl albums fell 25% to $7 million, accounting for less than 1% of Latin revenue. music in the usa