We all know Biggie Smalls famous line … “Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis”. But who could have ever pictured that 20 years later, gamers would be creating a world where artist could earn beyond traditional streaming.
By now, you’ve likely seen some of the stats from the Luminate Midyear Report. One area that has particularly caught my attention, and that my team at UnitedMasters has been focusing on this year, is the relationship between gaming and music streaming.
Here are a few of my quick takeaways:
Impact of Gaming on Music Streaming
The announcement of Metallica's Fortnite takeover on June 12, 2024, led to significant growth in global streaming for the band's music. The six focus songs featured in the game saw a 20.1% increase in global on-demand audio streams, while the rest of the band's catalog grew by 6.2% during the same period. This showcases the powerful impact that gaming collaborations can have on music consumption. Earlier in the year, Fortnite featured Independent artist, BigXThaPlug’s “Whip It,” and ultimately leveraging the TikTok trending dance as an emote within the game. Sync placements have been a big component of our growth story for BigXThaPlug. To date, "Whip It" has over 100 million streams in the US (Luminate Midyear Music Report).
Growth in Specific Tracks
Analysis of select tracks included in Fortnite Festival announcements showed an average lift of 8.7% in on-demand audio streaming the day after the announcement compared to the day before. This demonstrates the immediate effect of gaming events on boosting music streaming. I’d imagine that “gaming influencers” like Kai Cenat have a similar impact when they leverage their attention engines to promote new songs (Luminate Midyear Music Report).
Preferred Gaming and Music Genres
Different fan groups have specific gaming preferences. For example, K-Pop fans over-index in role-playing games, Hip-Hop/Rap fans in fighting games, and Dance/Electronic fans in rhythm games. This indicates a strong correlation between certain music genres and the types of games their fans are likely to play. We saw this with one of our new artists, Trxy!. His heavy shoegaze single, "Realize," grew to over 20 million streams and has over-indexed with gamers playing Call of Duty (Luminate Midyear Music Report).
Merchandise Purchasing Trends
Gamers are more likely to purchase music-related merchandise, memorabilia, and collectibles compared to the average U.S. music listener. This trend is consistent across various generations, with Gen Z gamers being 25% more likely, Millennials 40% more likely, Gen X 19% more likely, and Boomers 11% more likely to have made such purchases in the past 12 months (Luminate Midyear Music Report). For Marketers, As you develop your marketing mix and align on who your artists fans are, you should also consider how you can reach the subset of fans who are also gamers. There seems to be a real correlation between the “superfan” and the “gamer” that can be used to drive engagement for your artists.
These insights underscore the growing synergy between the gaming and music industries, highlighting the potential for cross-promotion and the importance of targeted marketing strategies to leverage these connections.
I’ve listed a few of Gaming and Music’s notable collaborations below:
Travis Scott and Fortnite: Travis Scott's "Astronomical" concert in Fortnite was a groundbreaking event, attracting millions of players for a virtual performance.
Marshmello and Fortnite: Marshmello performed a live virtual concert in Fortnite, marking one of the first major artist collaborations in the game.
Lil Nas X and Roblox: Lil Nas X hosted a virtual concert on Roblox, featuring a virtual stage and multiple performances.
Ariana Grande and Fortnite: Ariana Grande's "Rift Tour" in Fortnite included multiple in-game performances and special events.
Logic and Twitch: Logic signed an exclusive streaming deal with Twitch, where he performed music and interacted with fans.
Diplo and Fortnite: Diplo held several virtual concerts in Fortnite, including Major Lazer and Diplo Presents: Thomas Wesley.
Zedd and Valorant: Zedd collaborated with Riot Games to create a custom skin and soundtrack for Valorant.
Post Malone and Pokémon: Post Malone performed a virtual concert for Pokémon’s 25th anniversary celebration.
Steve Aoki and Sonic the Hedgehog: Steve Aoki hosted a virtual concert in collaboration with Sega for Sonic the Hedgehog's 30th anniversary.
Tiësto and Rocket League: Tiësto collaborated with Rocket League to feature his music and special in-game items.
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