The Relationship Between Digital Media and the Music Industry

If you are a big lover of the music industry, then you will know that various factors influence how the industry works. It’s not as simple as streaming music anymore or texting into your favourite radio show to let them know your favourite song. Nowadays, there is so much more to it. For example, the ever-growing world of digital media affects the music industry by making musicians more popular and giving them a platform to succeed even further. Plus, digital media as a whole such as iGaming and various social media channels can affect the music industry too. Let’s delve into this – keep reading to find out more!

Platform for musicians

Firstly, digital media serves as a huge influence on the music industry. Before social media developed, it was difficult for smaller artists to market and advertise themselves to people across the globe. However, people are now able to use various social media platforms to promote their music and to engage with their fans. This is why it’s now very easy for smaller artists to widen their audience and develop new opportunities. For instance, musicians and performers can keep their fans up to date with new music, other forms of entertainment, key dates for concerts and other personal information. Musicians have certainly used forms of digital media to their advantage, and this won’t stop anytime soon!

The iGaming influence

Whether it is video games, an online casino or other digital forms of gaming, the iGaming industry has a profound impact on the music industry. This works in two ways. Firstly, the music that gaming developers and providers choose to use in the games and on sites, will affect the popularity of music. Previous studies have shown that when music is chosen for games, this can affect its popularity in the charts and amongst gamers. For instance, people can sometimes relate songs with specific games. The second way this works is that the music chosen for games can wholly affect the gamers experience when playing. For example, music is known to influence feelings when playing as well as adding suspense, excitement or overall enjoyment.

Impact of social media

As well as being a useful platform for musicians to connect with their fans and widen their platform, social media also impacts the music industry as a whole. It has been found that some social media platforms can affect how likely it is for music to enter the charts and how likely it is to be streamed more often on music streaming sites. This has been excellent for smaller, independent and indie artists as they can use these platforms to widen their popularity for the chance of more streams elsewhere.

Final thoughts

Overall, it is no secret that digital media affects the music industry and visa-versa. The impact of digital media on the popularity of music (especially from smaller artists) is profound – which has especially been the case over the past few years. What do you think?

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About the Author

Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.