Only 20% of creators make a living from dance music despite industry growth, IMS report reveals

The annual IMS Business Report has revealed that despite a 34% growth in the dance music industry’s valuation to $11.3bn in 2022, only 20% of creators solely made a living from dance music, while 45% reported earning “zero” income from it.

While music publishing in dance music rose by 17%, the industry’s main earnings came from streaming platforms, which had a valuation of $20bn in 2022. However, on average, users listen to hip hop 2.5 times more than dance music, despite the latter having a far higher follower share on TikTok and YouTube.

Despite an increase in bookings for electronic acts across the board, the report also highlighted the number of female DJs being hired for events is just 15%, down from 21% in 2022.

Male DJs saw a 344% increase in bookings, while women had a 199% increase. Tech house was the most popular genre of dance music, while 33% of users listen mostly to music that falls outside the top 10 biggest selling genres. The report was unveiled at the International Music Summit (IMS) at Destino Pacha, Ibiza.