New LOOP Study: Hip-Hop & Dance Fans More Likely to Embrace Streaming, Listen on Smartphones, Spend Money on Music

Available Now to Music Business Association Members;
Free Webinar 2pm ET Today Open to All

August 2, 2016 – Hip-Hop and Dance music fans are more likely to embrace next-generation digital behavior than fans of other genres, according to a new study from LOOP (Lots of Online People), and provided to the Music Business Association (Music Biz) for its members. The complete findings are compiled in “Music Genres: How Different Fans Consume,” the second in-depth report from the member-exclusive Music Biz Consumer Insights portal. The report will be unveiled today at 2 p.m. ET during a free webinar open to members and non-members alike; registration for the webinar will be open until 12:45pm ET.

Based on a study conducted by LOOP in May 2016 with 3,014 U.S. respondents, the report examined respondents’ attitudes toward more than 50 genres, compiling fans into five categories based on their preferences: Rock (65% of respondents), Pop (43%), Country (40%), Hip-Hop (30%), and Dance (24%). They were then profiled in terms of age, gender, music consumption, device usage, social media usage, and brand advocacy.

The study then revealed that Dance and Hip-Hop fans were more likely to listen via on-demand streaming services, which accounted for 34% of Dance fans’ listening time and 31% of Hip-Hop fans’ listening time, compared to the national average (total sample) of 24%. In addition, these fans are more likely than the general population to listen to music on their smartphones, which accounted for 24% of Dance fans’ listening time and 27% of Hip-Hop fans’ listening time, compared to the national average of 18%.

In addition, the study found that Dance and Hip-Hop fans are more likely to pay for music than the general population, with 79% of Dance fans and 72% of Hip-Hop fans saying they had purchased a music-related product over the previous six months, compared to only 63% of the general population. Moreover, 31% of Dance fans and 24% of Hip-Hop fans said they had paid for a subscription to a music streaming service vs. the overall average of 17%. Dance and Hip-Hop fans are also more likely to pay a premium for superior sound quality, with 25% and 21%, respectively, saying they would “definitely” do so vs. only 16% of the general population.

“This report gives Music Biz members key information on how to approach fans of every genre while revealing interesting trends around specific categories of fans,” said James Donio, President of Music Biz. “It is encouraging to see Hip-Hop and Dance fans embracing new forms of music distribution, and their willingness to pay for music products is one of many indicators that the future of the industry is bright.”

“These results confirm that, in addition to enjoying different types of music, fans of various genres also behave differently when it comes to their favorite listening methods, devices, and more,” said David Lewis, Co-Founder of LOOP. “We hope this report will help readers better target fans of every genre to ensure the health of the overall music business.”

Free registration for the “Music Genres: How Different Fans Consume” webinar is available at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1190026000072012292. Immediately following the event, the full report will be offered for purchase via the members-only Music Biz Consumer Insights portal at https://musicbiz.org/resources/tools/music-biz-consumer-insights/consumer-insights-portal.