Spotify made the bold statement in a recent letter to shareholders.
In a recent letter to shareholders, Spotify representatives stated that they believe the days of the Top 40 charts are over. Instead, the Swedish streaming giant claims that the industry has shifted towards a top 43,000 artists. The new number comes from their data, which indicates that 43,000 artists share 90% of all streams on the platform.
Music Business Worldwide obtained a copy of the letter and shared a report on the statement. “Our product and platform are driving discovery, diversifying taste, and helping up-and-coming artists reach new audiences,” the letter says. “Gone are the days of Top 40, it’s now the Top 43,000.”
The company maintains that its streaming service has helped users discover far more artists than consumers might have been able to in the past. This claim is expounded by their data as the number of artists that make up the top 90% has increased by 13,000 since 2019, further demonstrating Spotify users’ diverse musical inclinations. Based on the new discoveries, it will be interesting to see if any changes are made to the charts moving forward.
Another notable takeaway from the report is that 40,000 songs are being added to Spotify each day, meaning that new artists are facing competition unlike anything seen in the music industry. Moreover, outside of Europe, the US, and Latin America, there are considerably fewer subscribers, and even with a three-month free trial offer, less than a million people outside those regions signed up.
