Report: Live music contributes billions to British economy

A new report from trade group UK Music called Wish You Were Here reported that live music and music tourism contributed £3.7 billion (A$7.11 billion) to the British economy in 2015 – up 7% from the year before.

It said that 27.7 million people attended live music events in Britain in the twelve months of 2015. Of this, 24 million attended gigs and concerts and 3.7 million to festivals.

About 10.4 million (representing 38% of the figure) were music tourists, entering Britain specifically to catch a music act or event. This was up 16% from 2014, indicating the greater impact music tourism is progressively having on Britain. Total direct and indirect spend due to music tourism was up 7%. This included buying £38 million ($73 million) worth of tickets, and spending an average of £852 ($1638) on their visit. This kept 39,034 people in full time employment in the British live sector.

“The appetite for live music continues to grow”, UK Music CEO Jo Dipple pointed out. “Last year overseas music tourism increased by 16%, whilst British music events were attended by a staggering 27.7 million people in 2015. What this report shows, unequivocally, is the economic value of live music to communities, cities and regions”.

The UK’s Secretary Of State For Culture, Media & Sport, John Whittingdale, added: “This is a fantastic achievement and a great testament to both our live music industry and the musical talent it supports. This is no surprise given British artists account for just over one in seven albums purchased by fans around the globe”.

Despite losing 40% of its venues in the past ten years, London alone drew 8.4 million concertgoers. Three million of these were music fans coming from outside Britain. In total, they added almost £1 billion ($1.9 billion) towards the capital’s economy.

Over 17 million people attended a live concert locally in their city, helping regional economies. The East Midlands region, for instance, the report pointed out, 360,000 visited the area for its shows, generating £162 million ($311.4 million) and supporting 2,021 jobs in the area in cities and towns like Nottingham, Derby, Leicester and Northampton.