South African music artists generated over R504 million on Spotify in 2025, according to the Swedish audio streaming and media service provider.
In its Loud & Clear report published yesterday, the company says the figure represents a 28% year-on-year increase and nearly double the local artists’ earnings since 2023.
As Spotify marks 20 years of existence this year, it notes this growth confirms the country’s independent and local talent is dominating the international streaming landscape, driven by worldwide demand.
Founded in Sweden in 2006, Spotify changed music consumption by offering instant online access to millions of songs through a freemium streaming model. Launched in 2008, the platform helped shift the industry away from piracy and physical music sales toward subscription-based streaming.
Spotify’s main competitors include Apple Music, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Deezer and Tidal. These platforms compete on features such as audio quality, exclusive content, playlists, podcasts and ecosystem integration.
Spotify’s Loud & Clear is an online, data-driven initiative launched in 2021 to increase transparency on music streaming economics and royalty payouts.
It provides insights into how Spotify pays rights holders, how money flows through the streaming industry, and features interactive tools to analyse artist earnings and streaming milestones.
According to Spotify’s latest annual music economics report, royalties earned by South African artists on the platform outpace the broader South African recorded music market’s 18% growth in streaming revenue, as measured by IFPI South Africa.
The report highlights the increasing role of independent musicians in the local music economy, with more than half of all royalties generated by South African artists on Spotify in 2025 going to independent artists or labels.
International audiences continued to drive growth for local musicians, with nearly 74% of royalties generated by South African artists coming from listeners outside the country.
Spotify notes that South African artists were discovered by first-time listeners more than 1.6 billion times in 2025, representing a 40% increase compared to 2024.
Editorial playlist support also expanded during the year, with nearly 3 550 South African artists added to Spotify editorial playlists, it states.
On the domestic front, local music maintained a dominant presence on streaming charts, as South African artists accounted for 67% of tracks featured on Spotify South Africa’s Daily Top 50 playlist in 2025.
The report also points to shifting listener preferences and the emergence of new genres. The fastest-growing music genres in South Africa on Spotify over the past five years were cloud rap, pop country, acoustic country, pop rap and worship music.
Female South African artists also recorded strong gains, with local streams growing 22% year-on-year and international streams increasing 20%.
Music performed in Zulu continued to gain global traction, with royalties generated by Zulu-language music rising 37% year-on-year and more than 120% over the past two years.
An event, held yesterday at Spotify’s new offices in Rosebank, Johannesburg, brought together industry leaders, media and content creators for conversations and insights.
Jocelyne Muhutu-Remy, MD of Spotify Sub-Saharan Africa, commented: “Loud & Clear’s report this year proves that South African artists are not only experiencing explosive growth but have solidified their position as a globally dominant creative force.
“Their success is driven by worldwide demand, ensuring independent and local talent alike are being discovered by billions of listeners and taking the international stage by storm.”
Solly Malatsi, minister of communications and digital technologies, shared his official statement with the team, as he was unable to attend.
In his remarks, he thanked Spotify for choosing South Africa as the hub for the continent and for believing in the country’s creative talent. He encouraged Spotify to promote the discovery of artists locally and globally, while challenging the platform to do more to support African languages, invest in skills development across the music ecosystem and promote transparency.
Spotify says it recognises African music as a global cultural force, noting that success in Johannesburg connects to Lagos, Accra, Nairobi and beyond.
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