Australia's Music Growth Slows Despite Record Revenue

The Australian recorded music industry achieved a record A$727 million in revenue for 2025, its seventh consecutive year of growth. However, the pace of expansion slowed to 1.4%, lagging behind the global growth of 6.4% reported in the IFPI's Global Music Report 2026.

A notable trend in Australia was the resurgence of physical music formats. CD sales increased by 29% to A$20.9 million, and vinyl revenue grew 4.1% to A$46.3 million, now comprising 68.2% of all physical sales. Streaming, the dominant format, saw a 1.4% increase to A$516 million, though ad-supported models remained relatively flat.

Globally, music revenue reached US$31.7 billion in 2025. China was a standout performer, with 20.1% revenue growth, surpassing Germany to become the fourth-largest global market. Australia, meanwhile, has fallen out of the top 10 and is not expected to re-enter soon, as larger markets like Mexico expand rapidly in streaming.

ARIA CEO Annabelle Herd attributed the sustained growth to Australian's connection with music and label investment, while acknowledging the slowing pace as streaming markets mature. She also highlighted the opportunities and challenges presented by artificial intelligence, emphasizing the need for fair compensation and consent for artists and rights holders, and ARIA's advocacy to protect copyright laws against international tech companies.

Herd also stressed the difficulty for emerging Australian artists to gain traction globally and advocated for policy changes, such as removing the statutory cap on radio royalties, to better support local creators and protect domestic culture.