Physical music formats are generating renewed revenue, but the increase is layered on top of streaming rather than replacing it. U.S. recorded-music data for 2025 and artist-level accounts from Los Campesinos! show a market in which direct fan purchases serve a different function from subscription listening.
Streaming Still Dominates Recorded Music
In the United States, streaming generated about $9.5 billion in wholesale recorded-music revenue in 2025. All physical formats combined generated about $1.38 billion, with vinyl surpassing $1 billion in U.S. revenue. Vinyl has posted gains for years, while CDs and cassettes are also showing renewed commercial activity. Listeners are not abandoning Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube for physical formats. Streaming remains the basic infrastructure of the recorded-music business.
Global streaming continues to expand. Luminate reported that on-demand audio streams increased another 9.8% during the first half of 2026. The physical revival is therefore not displacing streaming; it is growing alongside it.
Los Campesinos! Merchandise vs. Streaming Revenue
The Welsh indie band Los Campesinos! owns the rights to its 2024 album All Hell, making its figures unusually direct. During the album’s first year, tracks from All Hell accumulated roughly 9.3 million streams across digital platforms and generated £31,940.29. Spotify accounted for almost 75% of those streams and roughly £20,429 of the revenue.
The band also published accounts from an 11-show U.S. tour. Merchandise sales totaled $111,978, almost 89% as much as the band received in performance fees for the shows themselves. After manufacturing, credit-card fees, point-of-sale costs and shipping, Los Campesinos! calculated approximately £40,337 in merchandise profit.
- 9.3 million streams generated £31,940.29 in the album’s first year.
- Spotify delivered roughly £20,429 of that streaming revenue.
- Merchandise profit from 11 U.S. shows reached about £40,337.
- Merchandise profit exceeded the full-year streaming revenue from All Hell.
The accounting periods are not directly equivalent, and the band has said newer acts should not assume they can reproduce its merchandise results. Los Campesinos! is established, unusually transparent and supported by a loyal audience.
Direct Fan Support Through Physical Product
On another tour, the band reported selling 1,474 shirts and more than 500 LPs, producing £69,576 in merchandise sales. The band described many of those purchases as a way for longtime listeners to provide additional financial support.
Streaming gives listeners broad access, but physical merchandise converts a fan’s interest into direct artist-specific spending. A fan is not renting access to a catalog; the fan is choosing to give money specifically to an artist.
Spotify Royalty Context
Spotify says it paid more than $11 billion to the music industry in 2025. More than 81,000 artists generated at least $10,000 in Spotify royalties, and more than 13,800 generated at least $100,000.
Spotify also notes that streaming audiences can generate income elsewhere through concerts, merchandise and other activities.
