Spotify paid $10 billion to the music industry last year, with $4.5 billion to publishers across 2023-24. So why are songwriters still struggling?

Spotify wrote in its annual Loud and Clear Report that nearly 1,500 artists generated over $1 million in royalties in 2024.

Spotify said on Wednesday it paid $10 billion in royalties in 2024, the largest payout to the music industry in a single year.

Spotify paid the music industry $10bn (£7.7bn) in 2024, which the streaming service said was the highest annual payment from any single retailer in history. But the figures come as a heated debate continues about how much money artists and songwriters receive in royalties.

It's no secret that Spotify isn't a big money maker for most artists. But, in its annual Loud & Clear report, the music streamer is trying to change the narrative, reiterating an earlier claim that it paid artists $10 billion in 2024 ($60 million since launching) and adding that these payments increased tenfold over the last 10 years.

Spotify said on Wednesday it paid $10 billion in royalties in 2024, the largest payout to the music industry in a single year. Julian Satterthwaite reports. The scientists trying to save the fewer tha