Artists with Universal Music Group, the world’s leading music company, represented half of the top-selling albums in the U.S. last year, according to Billboard and Nielsen.
UMG artists Taylor Swift, Sam Smith, Ariana Grande, Lorde and Luke Bryan all ranked among the top 10 best-selling albums in 2014, according to Nielsen’s figures. On the Billboard/Nielsen Overall Top 10 Chart (based on U.S. Album Sales; Track Equivalent Albums; Stream Equivalent Albums), UMG had all top six of the the album releases.
The strong showing is the result of Universal Music’s continued investment in discovering and developing new talent. The company broke four new acts globally last year – Iggy Azalea, 5 Seconds of Summer, Ariana Grande and Sam Smith – and ended 2014 with the biggest share of music sales in the U.S., U.K., Germany and France.
“That unfailing commitment to artist development on a global basis has always been what sets us apart—not merely from other major labels and publishers, but from every other player in the music world,” said Lucian Grainge, chairman and chief executive officer of Universal Music Group. “No matter what else may change, that never will.”
Digital music consumption continues to grow, thanks to a 54 percent increase in listening on streaming services, according to Nielsen. The digital music category that includes digital albums, track equivalent albums and streaming equivalent albums grew 3.7 percent in 2014.
On-demand audio streams climbed 61 percent and views of music videos climbed almost 50 percent, according to Nielsen.
As consumers continue to embrace subscription streaming services, other formats experienced declines last year. Overall album consumption decreased 2 percent, while total album sales, which include CDs and cassettes, fell 11 percent, according to Nielsen. Downloads of digital tracks declined 13 percent.
Vinyl records continued to be a bright spot in physical media with a 52 percent increase in sales last year, according to Nielsen.
