A new report from UK Music has revealed that the UK music industry contributed £7.6 billion to the nation’s economy last year.
The This Is Music 2024 report outlines the vast economic contribution the industry makes to the UK economy, with 2023 reaching a record high of £7.6 billion in terms of Gross Value Added (GV). This marked a 13% increase on 2022, which saw the industry generate £6.7 billion.
UK music exports revenue in 2023 also hit a new high of £4.6 billion, while total UK music industry employment in 2023 reached a record total of 216,000 (full-time or equivalent posts), which represented a 3% increase on 210,000 in 2022.
On the live music front, 2023 saw a raft of global superstars perform across the UK’s biggest stages, with the likes of likes of Beyonce, Burna Boy, Harry Styles, Blur, Pink, Elton John and Ed Sheeran all playing major UK shows.
Exports received a further boost from international touring by British artists in 2023, including Harry Styles, Coldplay, Depeche Mode, Blur, Def Leppard, Sam Fender, and Arctic Monkeys, while Adele continued her 2023 residency at Caesars Palace Las Vegas.
However, in spite of the positive nature of the report, there are still significant challenges facing the sector, particularly at grassroots level. According to the Music Venue Trust, around 125 grassroots music venues across the country closed last year, with another 350 facing the risk of closure.
Furthermore an estimated 192 festivals have disappeared since 2019 and 60 festivals announced a postponement, cancellation, or closure in 2024, according to the Association of Independent Festivals.
Meanwhile, UK artists now cumulatively account for less than 10% of global audio streams, whereas their collective share of global music consumption was estimated at 17% in 2015, according to the BPI.
For the past two years, UK Music has surveyed British-based music creators and their experiences of Brexit for its This Is Music report. Of those whose income was impacted by Brexit, 87% said their earnings fell in 2023 - up from 82% of those surveyed in 2022.
This Is Music 2024 contains case studies from songwriter and performer Victoria Canal and record producer Catherine Marks who both tell their personal stories and outline some of the challenges facing artists and music creators.
“The music industry is ideally placed to turbo charge the new UK government’s mission to secure the highest sustained growth in the G7,” said UK Music chief executive Tom Kiehl. “A decade which began with the pandemic, causing much devastation to the sector, has seen a resilient music industry emerge. International appetite for UK music remains strong, with exports growing by 15% to £4.6 billion. Employment continues to rise steadily at 3%, with 216,000 people now working in the sector.
“This is not a time to be complacent, however. Far from it in fact. This is Music 2024 tells the story, based on real evidence and data from across the sector, that despite some very strong headline figures in 2023, the UK music industry has vulnerabilities too.
“Increasing global competition, tough financial conditions for artists and the grassroots, as well as the wild west that is generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), are all conspiring to be significant challenges for the sector.
“We are now at a tipping point, and if the problems we face are not addressed then future growth cannot be guaranteed.”
Kiehl also highlighted four key areas where urgent action was needed to help the UK’s music sector grow in an increasingly competitive global market:
- Promote changes to the law that safeguard against unregulated AI, and reject proposals that fail to achieve this.
- Ensure every child and young person across the UK has access to free music making.
- Introduce a cap on secondary ticket resale prices.
- Fight for visa-free touring for musicians and crew.
UK Music’s full recommendations to Government can be seen in UK Music’s Manifesto for Music here.
Earlier this week, US pop star Katy Perry announced that she would donate £1 from all of her 2025 UK ticket sales to the Music Venue Trust in order to support the grassroots sector.