VALUING AUSTRALIAN COUNTRY MUSIC 2025

The CMAA’s new research report, ‘Valuing Australian Country Music 2025’, confirms that our country music scene is part of a global surge in popularity with genre-bending songs and recordings by established stars from other genres leading a new generation of fans to discover and embrace country.

Country music revenue from live performances – festivals, concerts, small venues, has been the standout, with attendances and patron spending easily surpassing the levels we previously reported in 2019.

We estimate that country music in the 2024/25 financial year generated $1.09 billion.

The report was the result of eight months of research by a team of undergraduates from JMC Academy and Collarts in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, led by project manager and report author Dobe Newton, Chair of the CMAA.

The importance of this timely update and the growing importance of the genre, was underlined by the fact that, for the first time, the NSW State Government, through Sound NSW and the Federal Government through Creative Australia approved funding to enable the research.  They joined long-time partner the Tamworth Regional Council.

Among The Key Findings:

• Total industry revenue up 77 per cent from $619 million in 2019.
•  Live performance revenue: $560 million, representing 51 per cent of the industry’s total and a 93 per cent increase on 2019 figures.
•  137 dedicated country music festivals drew 684,000 patrons, while 49 major concerts, including Luke Combs’ six sold-out stadium shows, attracted 490,000 fans, and 542 small venues presented 16,000+ gigs which attracted 1.87 million patrons.
•  Live Nation reported a 4.5-fold increase year-on-year in country shows booked in Australia.
•  Country music live performances created 2,086 Full Time Equivalent jobs.
•  Country streaming on Australia’s Spotify platform Australia has increased by 115% per cent in the last three years, with Australia confirmed as the third-largest and fastest-growing country market globally by Spotify AUNZ. 
• According to Spotify, Australia has the world’s highest percentage (74%) of new country listeners.
•  Songwriting participation rose, with 16 per cent of APRA writers identifying as ‘country’, up from 11 per cent in 2019.  Melbourne continues to be Australia’s country writing ‘capital’.

A Note of Caution:

Despite the strong growth, the report flags a decline in local chart representation, with Australian country artists – as is the case in all contemporary music genres, losing ground in terms of sales and streaming charts and airplay rankings.

While Australians are listening to more country music than ever before, the majority of that content is international. We must work to ensure Australian voices don’t get drowned out on digital platforms.

The risk isn’t just economic — it’s cultural, as country music reflects the stories, values and identity of all Australians, particularly those in rural and regional areas. If we lose those voices, we lose something important and uniquely ours.

The ‘Valuing Australian Country Music 2025’ report is now available through the CMAA for download.

DOWNLOAD THE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY HERE

DOWNLOAD THE FULL REPORT HERE

The CMAA acknowledges support for this project through the NSW Government’s Create NSW and the Federal Government’s Creative Australia, and the Tamworth Regional Council.

For enquiries:

Dobe Newton
Country Music Association of Australia
P: 0413 039 907
E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.