Global music revenues accelerated at a fast rate and grew by 18.5% to $25.9bn in 2021. Streaming grew grew to 523 million paid subscribers, up from 443 million in 2020. Streaming accounts for 65% of total revenues, with CDs, vinyl and cassettes making up 19% and downloads 4%. “It’s hugely encouraging,” chief executive Frances Moore told the BBC. “We lived through that dire period after 1999 where the industry declined by 40%. “We didn’t envisage we’d be in a situation [this year] where we report on 60 or 70 countries and every single one is in growth.”