Since October 2021, we are finally measuring continuous music listening (streaming) in Quebec. And in light of a report published by the Observatoire de la culture et des communications, it is clear – unsurprisingly – that Quebec artists are more eclipsed on platforms like Spotify and Apple Music.
Posted at 9:00 a.m.
It should be noted that the Quebec Institute of Statistics has had access to online viewing figures for Quebec since October 15 only.
In the report The Quebec recorded music market in 2021 made public Wednesday, two days before the national holiday, we learn that during the last 11 weeks of the year 2021, Quebecers generated 4.6 billion plays of songs on online services, of which only 9% from provincial artists. This is less than the share of Quebec albums sold in digital and physical format (35%) and than the share of French-language albums (23%).
“The figures relate only to 11 weeks”, agrees the analyst Claude Fortier, of the Observatory of culture and communications. He nevertheless tells us that the percentage of Quebecers among the artists listened to in streaming is 8% for the first four months of 2022. “The trend therefore seems quite stable, he explains. But we will see if this will be maintained throughout the year. »
Ève Paré, new vice-president of public affairs and general manager of ADISQ, is not surprised by the low percentage of Quebec artists listened to online.
We’re drowning in an ocean of content, and that raises the issue of discoverability.
Ève Paré, vice-president of public affairs and general manager of ADISQ
Mme Paré is pleased, however, that the platforms are finally giving the viewing figures by province and recognize by the very fact that Quebec is a market apart. “There is a challenge to process and use this data,” she points out, specifying that music with images on YouTube and TikTok is not counted.
French rap
Claude Fortier wants to monitor the listenership of Quebec hip-hop, which shines more in online listening than in album sales. From October 15 to December 31, 2021, the most “streamed” Quebec song was Copilot by FouKi with Jay Scott. During the same period, rapper Enima (who is in trouble with the law) was among the three most listened to Quebec artists online, along with Charlotte Cardin and the Cowboys Fringants.
Adele, Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran nevertheless remain the three most listened to performers in general during the same period.
The whole challenge is in the promotion of Quebec artists, says Ève Paré, of ADISQ. “It’s a battle we’re waging in Ottawa with the broadcasting bill. »
The bill adopted in the House of Commons, which will be studied in the Senate, aims in particular for online listening services to contribute to the development of Canadian and French-language content with “development requirements”.
Ève Paré also touts the Méta-musique initiative, a guide that helps artists showcase their music using metadata.
The rise of instrumental music
Rather interesting highlight: in the sales of Quebec albums in 2021, those in French account for 53%. That’s down from a peak of 77% in 2017, but for the first time the drop isn’t primarily due to the sale of albums in English, but rather to albums “in another language or without words “.
“There is a breakthrough of instrumental music from here with the Quebec public”, underlines Claude Fortier, who cites the success of the albums Stories Without Words – Symphonic Harmonium, Inscape by Alexandra Stréliski and Immersion by Angele Dubeau.
General decline in sales
Vinyl sales increased by 26% in Quebec in 2021. Another positive point: of the 20 best-selling albums, 16 were Quebec and 10 in French. However, it is a blessing in disguise, because the market is in decline, underlines Claude Fortier.
It’s no surprise that fewer Quebecers are buying music. However, in the United States and Canada, we see that the streaming offset the fall in album sales.
Nielsen estimates that 1,250 plays of a song (with a “premium” subscription, versus 3,750 with advertising) are equivalent to the sale of an album. Will it also be counted in this way in Quebec? “We will have to think about it,” replies Claude Fortier.
The latter points out that it is the sale of music dating back more than 18 months (known as from the catalogue) that seems to lower the listening to Quebec music online. “Sixty-five percent of catalog viewing is from non-Quebecers,” he says. [soit pour les 11 dernières semaines de 2021]. “We’re doing pretty well for the new stuff. »
Online listening is a measure of how much people consume “old” music versus new music. “Before, we didn’t know with the numbers how much people listened to their old records or CDs, he illustrates. We can now measure the weight of listening to novelty versus the catalogue. »