15.4.2025
The European music market is evolving rapidly. Streaming dominates, indie artists are thriving, and sustainability is gaining traction—but the tools available to producers, artists, and indie label managers often feel stuck in the past. Let’s break down what’s happening in the industry, what it means for you, and how you can stay ahead of the curve.
The European music industry has seen a steady recovery after a major decline in the early 2000s, caused by the advent of piracy and digital disruption. Over the last decade, revenues have increasingly shifted towards streaming.
By 2023, streaming made up nearly 49% of the global music market, and Europe, the second-largest region, recorded a growth rate of 8.9% in music revenues, totaling €5.2 billion (IFPI). Paid subscriptions passed 500 million globally, with streaming becoming the dominant revenue stream for both major and independent artists (IFPI).
The European music market contributed €5.2 billion to global revenues last year, making it the world’s second-largest market. Independent artists, in particular, are thriving, with DIY artist revenues growing by 34% in 2023. But the reality is that collaboration remains disjointed. Every week, artists and labels leave money on the table due to lost royalties, misplaced files, or unclear agreements.
For producers juggling multiple projects, this isn’t just frustrating—it’s limiting your output. For artists, it’s stifling your creativity. And for label managers, it’s draining resources that could be spent developing talent or scouting the next big thing.
In Europe, independent artists and music professionals are becoming an increasingly dominant force in the music industry, especially with the rise of digital platforms like Spotify, SoundCloud, and YouTube. These artists range from small, emerging musicians who self-release their work to more established professionals who manage their own production, marketing, and distribution processes.
Streaming services remain the backbone of the European music industry, accounting for over 75% of recorded music revenues in key markets such as Germany, France, and Italy. This dominance is projected to continue, with overall global streaming growth expected at a rate of 12.6% annually. However, challenges are emerging. Spotify's recent changes to its royalty payment policy, which no longer pays royalties on tracks with fewer than 1,000 streams annually, may disproportionately affect emerging artists. This policy, while possibly optimizing platform efficiency, raises concerns about Spotify's commitment to supporting new talent, particularly as growth in developed markets like Europe slows down. Moving forward, there is a need for more equitable compensation to support both established and emerging artists. (Music Week, ANote Music, Goldman Sachs, Spotify).
The transition to a fan-centric business model is poised to significantly drive revenue growth over the next decade. Artists and labels are increasingly leveraging superfans by offering personalized experiences, limited-edition merchandise, and exclusive content. This trend could generate up to $4.5 billion in additional annual revenue by 2030, as superfans are willing to pay premium prices for enhanced engagement. This aligns with the 2023 figure showing a 15.5% growth in revenue from these "expanded rights" streams, reinforcing the importance of direct artist-to-fan interactions as a growing and lucrative sector. (MIDiA Research, Music Week, Goldman Sachs).
Local music remains essential in Europe, with 75% of top albums in France and Italy being domestic productions. Regional platforms are increasingly pushing local artists in recommendation algorithms to enhance user engagement. While this trend strengthens ties with regional audiences, it also presents challenges for local artists aiming to break into the global market, particularly as the competition for playlist placements grows. (ANote Music).
Professionals spend an average of 8 hours per week managing their fragmented workflow, costing them up to €2,500 annually in lost productivity. Independent professionals and small teams often lack efficient collaboration tools, leading to issues with version control, lost files, and delayed projects. This fragmentation leads to wasted time and inefficiencies in bringing projects to completion. Small-to-mid-size labels are also facing growing competition from DIY artists and larger labels. They often lack the infrastructure to efficiently manage multiple projects, leading to administrative overhead and delays in releases (Music Week, PRS).
Many professionals pay around €40 to €100 per month on these tools combined, or €480 to €1,200 annually, just to manage their projects with these separate platforms.
For indie labels, these same problems persist but are only magnified by scale, costing more in monthly expenses and in time and opportunities lost.
€2.5 billion in royalties remains unclaimed annually due to incomplete or missing metadata and split agreements. This is a significant issue for both emerging and established artists who lose revenue streams from improper rights management. This amount refers primarily to unclaimed royalties worldwide, and is particularly relevant for independent artists globally. The issue arises from improper rights management, missing metadata, or lack of proper agreements. In Europe alone, independent creators still struggle with fragmented processes, leading to significant lost revenue opportunities due to poor rights tracking.
For labels, the process of creating and managing split sheets is time-consuming, often requiring labels to manually track down collaborators for signatures and agreement revisions. This can take days or weeks, delaying releases and leading to disputes over royalties. A single track may involve 2-5 collaborators, each requiring split agreements, and larger projects compound these administrative burdens.
Live performances and physical sales, which were historically reliable sources of income for musicians and labels, have taken a backseat to digital formats. As a result, many professionals are now reliant on streaming revenues, which, while growing, offer lower per-stream payouts compared to traditional album sales (IFPI). European markets are heavily dominated by local music — 75% of the top 200 in France and 80% in Italy are local artists (ANote Music). Yet, many of these artists miss out on full global monetization due to fragmented rights management and poor catalog optimization.
The real missed opportunity in the music industry is the untapped potential in maximizing the value of existing music catalogs. A vast number of music assets remain under-monetized due to incomplete metadata or lack of adequate rights management, which limits licensing and other income streams.
The global value of the music catalog market has seen rapid growth. For instance, in 2021 alone, €5 billion in publishing revenue came from sync licensing, digital rights, and catalog sales. However, many smaller catalogs and independent artists miss out on this due to fragmented rights management systems. By streamlining rights and metadata management, Vandall can help artists and labels capitalize on previously lost revenue (IFPI).
Independent artists are more empowered than ever due to the rise of streaming and self-publishing platforms like SoundCloud, Bandcamp, and TikTok. However, they often lack access to robust business management tools, resulting in poor handling of contracts, metadata, and royalty claims (ANote Music, MIDiA Research).
Many indie labels manually create release packages and listening links for media, distributors, and digital platforms. This involves gathering metadata, artwork, audio files, and legal agreements—a time-intensive process prone to errors. Indie labels are also often tasked with managing a wide array of agreements, from artist contracts to licensing deals. Without dedicated contract management tools, this process becomes overwhelming, increasing the risk of legal oversights and revenue losses.
The tools many of us rely on—email, messaging apps, file-sharing services—weren’t designed for music. They’re clunky, disconnected, and lack the industry-specific features we need. Every handoff of a project risks losing files, metadata, or even momentum. Collaboration in the modern music industry shouldn’t feel like trying to organize a band using smoke signals.
Imagine a music industry where you never have to ask, "Did you get my email?" A world where agreements are signed before the first chord is laid down, and every file is exactly where it needs to be. This is the future Vandall is building—a future where producers, artists, and labels can reclaim their time and focus on what they do best: creating and promoting incredible music.
Let’s face it: Your time is too valuable to waste on admin work. If you’re interested in a tool that helps streamline your workflows and make sure you never lose your work or royalties that belong to you, try Vandall to centralize your project data and be the first to try our integrated agreements engine when it launches.
