The Music Industry is Dreaming of a Green Christmas
It’s beginning to sound a lot like Christmas. Undoubtedly, you’ve probably been hearing the sound of Christmas music permeating every public place you visit. That will only be ramping up as we move closer to Christmas Day. Why may Christmas be such a lucrative time for music companies and artists? How has streaming ramped up holiday music revenue?
Christmas Music Is Big Money
While there are different metrics, Christmas music can generate significant revenue for music companies and artists. Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’ is one of the top-grossing holiday songs. While exact figures are not known, Forbes sums up revenue generated by the song as “quite a bit.” It estimates Carey makes about $2.5 million annually and that the song had grossed at least $72 million by 2021 since its release in 1994.[1]
Bing Crosby’s ‘White Christmas’ holds the record for the best-selling in terms of units, having sold over 100 million since 1942.[2]
Billboard estimates that Christmas music generates $177 million in revenue annually in the United States.
Streaming of a White Christmas
Streaming has created a potentially lucrative revenue stream for Christmas music.
While sales of physical music are a one-time event, streaming generates revenue for music companies and artists every time a song is played.
Additionally, it is easy to create or listen to a holiday playlist on most music streaming services. Many streaming platforms create playlists with popular Christmas songs.
This fits in with a current trend on streaming platforms where listeners choose music based on mood.
On average, there is a broad spike in holiday music listenership right after Halloween. Christmas music typically surpasses 2% of all streams on Spotify around November 12 and peaks on Christmas Day.
Mariah Carey’s song accounts for 1 in every 50 holiday music streams on Spotify.
Boosting Catalog Music
Catalog music is defined as older music. In 2022, catalog music accounted for 70% of the entire U.S. music market. The Christmas season may be a good way for older artists to make money and reestablish themselves in the public eye.
Many of the most popular Christmas songs is part of the catalog.
Mariah Carey’s song is from 1994.
In 2023, Brenda Lee’s ‘Rocking Around the Christmas Tree’ hit the Number One spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Other popular catalog songs include ‘White Christmas.,’ Wham’s ‘Last Christmas,’ and ‘The Chipmunk Song,’ released 61 years ago.
Consider MUSQ for Exposure to Christmas Music
The MUSQ Global Music Industry ETF (MUSQ) seeks to provide investment results that, before fees and expenses, correspond to the total return performance of the MUSQ Global Music Industry Index (MUSQIX). The MUSQIX Index is designed to provide exposure to global, publicly traded companies and royalty funds with a core business interest in the global music industry.
For a complete list of MUSQ holdings, please click here.
[1] All data sourced from: Christmas Music is Big Business – Just Ask Mariah Carey, CBC, 12/22/23; Here’s How Much Mariah Carey and Brenda Lee Earn Per Year From Their Holiday Classics, Forbes, 12/12/23; Million-Dollar Songs: ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ Keeps Raking It In, Forbes, 12/24/21; Wooten, Jadrian, The Economics of Christmas Music, Monday Morning Economist, 12/4/23
[2] Best-Selling Single for Christmas, Guinness World Records, guinessworldrecords.com, Retrieved 10/17/24
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