To say the music industry is facing tough times is an understatement. The rapid spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) has forced people to stay inside. Entire festivals and tours have been canceled, venues have shut down — and the one silver lining we anticipated was a boost in music streaming.
Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case.
According to Alpha Data analytics, music streams in the United States actually decreased last week, dropping 7.6 percent to under 20.1 billion during the self-quarantine. A drop-off like this is considered “rare,” according to Rolling Stone. Perhaps this is linked to lesser commute times for people laid off or working from home, spending their time streaming video, or playing more video games. 
Digital song sales went down as well, dropping 10.7 percent to 3.9 million, according to the same report. This is the first drop under 4 million within the past four years, since Alpha Data started tracking such sales. Digital album sales dropped 12.4 percent and physical sales dropped 27.6 percent.
Genre wise, people were less likely to stream popular categories including pop, rap, R&B and Latin music. Classical, folk and children’s music saw minor boosts, however.
As far as strategies you could employ to keep streaming your favorite artists’ music without interrupting your new daily routines, consider low volume or muted streaming while doing other activities around the house. You can do this on multiple platforms at once, such as SoundCloud, Apple Music, Spotify, and Amazon Music if you’re really committed.
See the full report here.
Source: Rolling Stone | Photo Illustration by Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Image
