Canadian Musician September / October 2019

CHANGES Nielsen Music 360 Canada Report: Millennials & Teens Driving Rise of Music Streaming & Podcasts usage compared to the other services. Seen elsewhere in the report, among music listeners, 27 per cent report paying for a streaming subscription. Of those not currently paying for a subscription, 12 per cent say they’re likely to start in the next six months, with that number rising among teens (29 per cent) and millennials (32 per cent). That 12 per cent represents as many as 3.4 million people, which if converted to a $10/month streaming subscription could mean another $410 million in revenue for the streaming and music industry. Nielsen’s report also makes note of the increasing popularity of podcasts. Among the general population, 33 per cent say they listen to more podcast content than they did a year ago. Among millennials, that number grows to 47 per cent. This is negatively affecting the amount of time spent listening to music. Among teens, 39% said they spend less time listening to music because of their podcast consumption, and millennials spend 16 per cent less time with friends because of their podcast consumption. The Nielsen Music 360 Canada report is not publicly available but can be purchased online via www.nielsen.com. Canadian Artists Unite to Raise Awareness of Suffering in Sudan A4A Records has released a cover of U2’s “Sunday Bloody Sunday” record- ed by a wide range of high-profile Canadian musicians known collectively as Artists for Sudan. The song’s release is meant to bring awareness to the human suffering in the African nation as a result of its civil war. The track was recorded in Toronto by producers David Bottrill and Darcy Ataman with contributions from: Ian D’Sa and Ben Kowalewicz (Billy Talent); Jim Cuddy (Blue Rodeo); Cone McCaslin (Sum 41); Neil Sanderson and Matt Walst (Three Days Grace); Damhnait Doyle; Em- manuel Jal; Serena Ryder; Corey Hart; Ron Hawkins (The Lowest of the Low); Scott Anderson (Finger Eleven); Simon Ward (The Strumbellas); Amy Millan (Stars); Colin and John-Angus MacDonald (The Trews); and Ewan Currie (The Sheepdogs). “When people are deprived of justice, they create their own lan- guage of hope and healing,” says Ataman. “The best way to express this is through music and art. ‘Sunday Bloody Sunday,’ reimagined by some of our greatest Canadian artists, is a protest song for the people in a country that cannot protest for themselves to the wider world. Our hope is that as a tool of advocacy, it helps to finish bending the arc of history of Sudan towards the light.” Though not intended as a charity record, all proceeds raised through downloads and streams will be donated to Human Rights Watch. 12 CANADIAN MUSICIAN PHOTO: ASHLEY Nielsen Music has released the 2019 edition of its annual “Music 360 Canada” report, in which it examines music consumption numbers and trends from the last year. This year’s report notes the increasing popularity of podcasts and that streaming and smart speakers continue to influence consump- tion habits. According to Nielsen, 89 per cent of the Canadian population – and 94 per cent of millennials – regularly listen to music and, of those, the average listening time is 27 hours per week. Of that total, 33 per cent is via a streaming service. Despite streaming’s rise, AM/FM radio remains the most popular means of music discovery, with 48 per cent of respon- dents saying they discover music via AM/FM radio stations “over the air” and another 24 per cent saying they stream AM/ FM stations online. Also revealed is that those who pay for a premium subscription with a music streaming service are listening to more music (34 hours per week average), and 42 per cent of them say they’re willing to pay more for top-quality music technolo- gy. Paid streaming subscribers are also most likely (46 per cent) to own a home smart speaker. YouTube continues to be the biggest streaming service in awareness and usage. Among music listeners, 73 per cent know of YouTube and, of those, 55 per cent use it. Spotify is a distant second with 62 per cent awareness and 29 per cent usage. Among music listeners, YouTube also has the great- est percentage of users and highest daily

Canadian Musician September / October 2019 | Page 12