Music industry in the UK: industry profile

The music industry remains a powerhouse within the UK’s creative economy. In the government’s Creative Industries Sector Plan, published in June 2025, it is lauded as a globally successful sub‑sector with high growth potential.

According to UK Music, the industry contributed £7.6 billion in Gross Value Added (GVA) in 2023, a 13% increase on 2022. The same year, exports reached £4.6 billion, up 15%, and employment rose by 3% to 216,000 people.

Notably, the UK has the third biggest recorded music market in the world (according to IFPI), and remains one of just three global net exporters of music, ranking second only to the United States in export strength.

Meanwhile, the live music segment has seen some remarkable growth in recent years. A recent report from UK Music notes that 23.5 million “music tourists” attended UK shows in 2024 – up 23% from 2023.

However, the industry faces some significant challenges, including grassroots venue closures, growing competition from global markets, Brexit-related touring barriers, and uncertainties around artist remuneration and AI. These are explored in more detail below.

Given that the UK music industry is very large and diverse, it is not possible to provide a full breakdown of its constituent parts here. That said, below we outline what are perhaps the four key top-level segments of the industry.

It is important to note that these segments are not entirely self-contained, but rather interlinked and overlapping.

This segment focuses on the production, distribution, and marketing of sound recordings, and on the monetisation of the performances captured in those recordings. It involves record labels (both major and independent), music distributors, recording studios, and so on.

Recorded music is distributed via various channels, such as streaming platforms, physical media, and download stores.

According to the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), total wholesale revenues for the UK recorded music segment reached £1.49 billion in 2024 (up 4.8% year on year), with streaming exceeding £1 billion for the first time.

Streaming now makes up around 68% of recorded music revenue, driven largely by major platforms like Spotify and Apple Music.

This segment focuses on the staging and promotion of live performances across venues ranging from stadiums and festivals to clubs and underground spaces. It monetises the experience of music as a live event, encompassing ticket sales, sponsorship, and ancillary revenues, while also serving as an important platform for artist development and audience engagement.

As is explored in more detail below, the current outlook for this segment is mixed – whilst star acts have fuelled impressive growth at the top end, smaller venues and events face a more difficult business landscape.

This segment deals with the management and monetisation of musical compositions, and with ensuring songwriters and composers are compensated whenever their work is performed, reproduced, or synchronised.

Naturally, it overlaps and interacts with the two aforementioned segments.

Music publishers receive a significant proportion of their revenues via licensing bodies and collective management organisations such as PRS for Music and the Mechanical Copyright Protection Society (MCPS), which license music on behalf of authors, composers, and publishers.

PRS for Music paid £1.02 billion to rightsholders in 2024. Meanwhile, the MCPS distributed £204.3 million in mechanical royalties in 2023.

This segment comprises the supporting infrastructure that enables the wider music industry to function. This includes management, booking, legal, financial, marketing, and technology services, which provide the professional and commercial frameworks that allow creative output to be organised, protected, and monetised.

The live music sector in the UK has experienced striking growth in recent years, but the gains have been unevenly distributed.

UK Music note that 23.5 million “music tourists” attended shows in 2024 – a record and 23% higher than in 2023 – supporting 72,000 jobs (up from 62,000 the previous year). Much of this expansion was driven by arena tours staged by global stars such as Charli XCX and Dua Lipa, as well as flagship festivals like Glastonbury and Download. For those active in this upper end of the market, opportunities remain plentiful.

However, grassroots music venues (GMVs) and smaller festivals face a much more difficult outlook, with factors such as rising rents, business rates, reduced consumer spending, neighbour disputes and licensing issues all posing problems. The Music Venue Trust (MVT) report that the number of GMVs declined from 960 to 835 in 2023, and decreased again in 2024, leaving 810 in total. Meanwhile, 72 festivals announced postponement, cancellation or closure in 2024 alone, according to the Association of Independent Festivals. Of the GMVs which remain, many are diversifying into private hire or non-music events.

Industry groups are calling for action to help ailing GMVs and smaller festivals, with targeted business rates relief and a reduction in VAT on tickets being put forward as two potential measures.

So far, the government has announced a £30m Music Growth package, backed a new industry-led levy on stadium and arena tickets, and committed to reforming business rates. These initiatives may help to restore balance to a live music market currently split between top level success stories and a struggling local base.

UK recorded music continues to perform strongly overseas, and the UK remains the world’s second-largest music exporter. Exports reached a record £794 million in 2024, according to the BPI. This is the highest figure since records began in 2000 and more than triple the total of a decade earlier.

However, the BPI’s figures also show that the dynamics of the global market are shifting. Export growth has slowed markedly: income from international sales and streams rose by just 1.9% in 2024, compared with 7.6% the previous year. Notably, too, no British acts ranked among the 20 most-streamed global artists in 2024 (down from three in 2023), and the UK’s share of global streams has fallen from around 17% in 2015 to under 10% as of 2024.

These statistics reflect the fact that the UK music industry is now faced with robust competition not only from established markets such as the US and Canada, but also from rapidly expanding markets across Latin America, Asia and Africa. Genres such as K-pop and reggaeton are now reaching global audiences at scale, challenging the historical dominance of English-language repertoire.

Recently, commentators have highlighted this shift. For instance, Goldman Sachs note that non-English-language artists are increasingly successful internationally, with eight featuring in IFPI’s Global Artists Charts in 2023 compared with just one in 2018.

Policy support may help counter these pressures. The government-backed Music Export Growth Scheme (MEGS) has delivered results: BPI figures show that MEGS-supported artists achieved 15.9 billion global streams in 2024, up 11% year on year. Such initiatives will likely be important if the UK is to sustain its influence in an increasingly diverse global music market.

In recent years, private equity (PE) firms have emerged as powerful buyers of music catalogues. 

One notable UK example is Blackstone's $1.58 billion acquisition of Hipgnosis Songs Fund in July 2024. After being founded in London in 2018, Hipgnosis went on to acquire the rights to thousands of successful songs, but subsequently ran into financial difficulties as interest rates soared. It has since rebranded as Recognition Music Group under Blackstone's ownership.

As the Financial Times have reported, songs have become an increasingly attractive asset class for PE investors as streaming has revived the music industry. Given that the performance of music catalogues may not be closely tied to that of traditional financial markets, they can offer PE firms diversification benefits.

It looks likely that PE firms will remain prominent in this space — both in the UK market and elsewhere. As a result, owners of music rights may wish to consider the benefits and challenges that may arise in the event of a PE acquisition.

BPI data show that revenue growth in the physical music market slowed considerably in 2024. Revenues across vinyl, CDs and other physical formats rose just 1.3% to £246.5 million, a sharp deceleration from the 12.8% increase recorded in 2023.

Despite this slowdown, vinyl remains a success story. In 2024 sales of vinyl albums climbed 9.1% to 6.7 million units – the highest figure in more than three decades – with revenues reaching £145.7 million, up nearly 3% year-on-year. Significantly, contemporary releases now dominate the market, with eight of 2024’s top ten vinyl albums being current rather than catalogue albums.

There are clear opportunities for vinyl to be successfully marketed as a collectible, premium product. Catering particularly to so-called ‘superfans’, labels have enjoyed success with limited-edition pressings and exclusive colour variants, for example.

Whilst physical sales still represent only a small share of overall revenues, they can provide high margins and valuable points of connection with the most engaged listeners.

As is stated in the government’s Creative Industries Sector Plan, “the rise of generative AI poses fresh challenges around copyright, authorship, and fair compensation”.

For one, many musicians fear their works are being used to train AI systems without their consent, undermining copyright and threatening livelihoods. IFPI have also raised concerns about the use of generative AI tools in streaming manipulation.

Several industry groups – such as the Creative Rights in AI Coalition – have called on the government to take action to address such issues, as have some MPs and peers. The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Music has urged government to introduce an AI Bill, including measures to safeguard copyright, enhance transparency, and protect artists’ voices and likenesses.

Despite the risks, however, AI technology may also serve to benefit the industry in certain respects: it has potential to support songwriting, assist with production, and expand opportunities for fan engagement and discovery. Companies such as DAACI are demonstrating how AI can act as a creative assistant, working with artists rather than replacing them. And, as Mintel note, artists and labels may be able to generate income by licensing their sounds for AI music creation.

For the industry, the challenge may lie in finding a balance between mitigating the risks of AI and embracing its potential.

The UK’s departure from the EU continues to present significant challenges for British musicians seeking to tour internationally. According to the Independent Society of Musicians, Brexit has had a “devastating” impact on UK musicians and the wider music sector.

In its 2023 Manifesto for Music, UK Music urged the government to negotiate a Cultural Touring Agreement with the EU, citing restrictive visas, complex red tape such as carnets, and barriers around merchandise sales and truck hire as obstacles constraining growth.

Whilst established artists are often better resourced and thus able to absorb increased costs and administrative burdens, UK Music research suggests that many up-and-coming performers are finding live performance abroad to be unviable: some of those earning £25,000 or less have seen their EU income fall by as much as 60%.

The government has acknowledged this issue and promised action. Its Creative Industries Sector Plan (published in June 2025) pledges to “make it easier for UK artists to perform in Europe, and deliver mutual economic and cultural benefits for the UK and the EU”. However, progress to date has been limited, and the sector continues to press for more concrete commitments.

Industry groups such as the Musicians’ Union (MU) have long campaigned for reforms aimed at boosting artists’ earnings, pointing to perceived injustices in the existing systems through which revenues are distributed to writers and performers.

In response, the government has promised action: its June 2025 Creative Industries Sector Plan pledges to deliver an industry-led agreement aimed at boosting creator earnings – enabling legacy artists to renegotiate historical contracts, and increasing remuneration for session musicians.

New principles announced in July 2025 aim to bring greater clarity to contract renegotiations for legacy artists, provide for additional financial support and assistance for songwriters (including per-diem payments), and more.

However, critics such as the MU argue that that these measures fail to address certain key issues. As a result, policymakers and industry leaders are likely to face pressure to take further action in this area.

The size and diversity of the UK music industry means that any list of notable players will not be fully representative or comprehensive.

That said, some examples of noteworthy players are set out below.

• Beggars Group — UK-based independent record company owning or co-owning influential labels like XL Recordings, Rough Trade, and Matador.
• DHP Family — one of the UK’s leading live entertainment companies; promotes national tours and concerts, operates music venues, organises festivals, and manages artists.
• Dice — innovative London-founded ticketing platform and concert discovery app, known for its mobile-first approach and built-in measures against ticket scalping.
• Domino Recording Company — influential independent label, best known for Arctic Monkeys and a diverse alternative roster.
• Festival Republic — leading promoter of major UK festivals including Reading & Leeds, Latitude, and Wireless.
• Live Nation UK — major live music promoter and venue operator, running festivals and large-scale concerts.
• Ministry of Sound — iconic London nightclub and brand, central to UK electronic music and club culture.
• Modest! Management — London-based artist management firm that has guided major pop acts such as One Direction and Little Mix.
• Recognition Music Group — British music rights investment company that acquires song catalogues and generates income from music royalties.
• Sentric Music Publishing — Liverpool-based publisher offering flexible rights management and royalty services to independent artists.
• Sony Music UK — major recorded music company with a strong roster of British and international artists.
• Universal Music UK — large music company, home to leading labels such as Island, Polydor, and EMI.
• Warner Music UK — major recorded music group, with artists across pop, rock, and electronic genres.
• Wise Music Group — international music publishing group headquartered in London, regarded as one of the world’s leading independent music publishers.

ICAEW’s Library & Information Service can provide information on UK and Irish participants in the music industry via its wide range of company information services. This includes:

• Information on company acquisitions in the sector
• Private company transaction multiples
• Company data
• Beta values
• P/E ratios

For more information, please contact our enquiry team on +44 (0)20 7920 8620 or at library@icaew.com to discuss your requirements.

• Association of Independent Festivals (AIF)
• Association of Independent Music (AIM)
• British Phonographic Industry (BPI)
• Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA)
• Featured Artists Coalition (FAC)
• Ivors Academy
• LIVE (Live music Industry Venues & Entertainment)
• Music Managers Forum (MMF)
• Music Mark
• Music Publishers Association (MPA)
• Music Venue Trust (MVT)
• Musicians' Union (MU)
• Production Services Association
• Society for Producers and Composers of Applied Music (PCAM)
• UK Music

• BIEM
• European Association of Conservatoires (AEC)
• Independent Music Companies Association (IMPALA)
• Independent Music Publishers International Forum (IMPF)
• International Federation of Musicians (FIM)
• International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI)
• International Music Council