The UK’s live music industry has recovered from the pandemic slump – and then some.
Newly-released data show consumer spend on live music events jumped 9.5% YoY in 2024, to GBP £6.68 billion (USD $7.23 billion at the average exchange rate for 2024).
The data comes from industry group Live music Industry Venues and Entertainment (LIVE), a federation of 15 live music industry associations representing 3,000 businesses, 35,000 artists and 2,000 backstage workers.
Notably, live music revenues were around £2 billion higher in 2024 than they were in 2019, the last full year before the Covid-19 pandemic shut down most live music events across the UK.
The report noted that UK live music growth doubled that of the global recorded music industry, citing data from Goldman Sachs’ Music in the Air report showing that recorded music revenues rose by 4.8% worldwide in 2024.
It also quoted Goldman Sachs’ assertion that “there’s a robust demand and supply outlook for the live music industry… it has proven to be more recession-resilient than other forms of entertainment.”
There was something of a shift in what sorts of events UK music fans spent their money on in 2024, with fans increasingly choosing concerts over festivals.
While concert revenue jumped 12.2% YoY, to £5.0 billion ($5.4 billion), festival revenue increased by only 1.9% YoY, to £1.7 billion ($1.8 billion) a growth rate that was below the UK’s 2.5% inflation rate for the year.
“This is partly due to a slowing of growth in music festivals, some of which have struggled to sustain themselves through the extended period of high inflation,” the LIVE report noted.
“It’s also attributable to higher ticket prices, which have had to rise after spikes in the costs of labor, energy and other important festival inputs.”
Nevertheless, festival revenue is now above 2019 levels, LIVE noted.
The shift also had to do with the fact that 2024 was a big year for touring, with the likes of Taylor Swift, Charlie XCX and Dua Lipa drawing a record 23.5 million music tourists to events across the UK, LIVE said.
Mainstream pop acts accounted for 32.1% of consumer spend at the top 2,000 concerts across the country last year, a 4.7 percentage point increase, the report said.
Not surprisingly, Greater London continued to have far and away the largest share of live music revenue, accounting for 28.9% of the total, followed by Manchester (8.1%), Glasgow (5.7%) and Birmingham (3.5%). One change among the top cities was that Cardiff edged out Edinburgh for fifth spot, at 2.4%.
The report noted an increase in employment in live music, which supported 234,000 people in 2024, a 2.2% YoY increase. The data showed that nearly four in five (78.8%) of those jobs were casual or freelance.
However, LIVE flagged the ongoing problem faced by small and grassroots music venues, which have been shutting down at a rapid pace in recent years.
“While UK live music continued the post-lockdown trend of strong performance for the biggest names at the biggest venues… pressure built across our grassroots as venues closed, tours were cancelled or cut back and festivals called time,” LIVE CEO Jon Collins said.
“Pressure built across our grassroots as venues closed, tours were cancelled or cut back and festivals called time.”
Jon Collins, LIVE
LIVE is calling on the UK government to implement “much-needed” music festival tax relief, and said its LIVE Trust program will soon be ready to roll out support to small venues.
LIVE Trust builds on on the Music Venue Trust initiative, which is a voluntary program under which £1 of revenue from ticket sales to arena and stadium shows with capacity over 5,000 is used to support small venues.
“With trustees now appointed and commitments already secured from a number of high-profile artists performing stadia and arena shows throughout 2025 and 2026, the LIVE Trust is confident it can soon begin offering financial support where it is needed,” LIVE said.
“More and more people have enjoyed going to gigs over the past year. There’s more shows, more choice and incredibly one live gig every 137 seconds.”
Steve Lamacq, LIVE
Despite the problems at grassroots venues, “it is a really exciting time for live music,” LIVE Chair Steve Lamacq said.
“More and more people have enjoyed going to gigs over the past year. There’s more shows, more choice and incredibly one live gig every 137 seconds. It’s testimony to the fact that live music brings people together and provides experiences and memories that will stay with us for years to come.
“With the launch of the LIVE Trust, we hope to make sure that those crucial small venues can survive and flourish so that they can continue to nurture the acts that’ll be filling venues and headlining festivals in years to come.”Music Business Worldwide