South African Artists Earn $30.69 Million on Spotify in 2025, Driven by Global Demand

Spotify announced that South African artists generated $30.69 million (R504 million) in royalties on its platform in 2025, marking a 28% year-on-year increase. Disclosed at the company’s new Rosebank office in Johannesburg, the data reveals that nearly 74% of these earnings originated from international listeners, highlighting the global export potential of local genres like amapiano. This figure is nearly double the earnings recorded in 2023. The report also noted that over half of the royalties went to independent artists or labels, demonstrating how streaming lowers barriers to global distribution. Additionally, South African artists were discovered by first-time listeners more than 1.6 billion times, a 40% increase from the previous year. Jocelyne Muhutu-Remy, Spotify’s Sub-Saharan Africa Managing Director, described South African musicians as a globally dominant creative force. The growth extends to specific demographics and languages, with significant increases in streams for female artists and music performed in Zulu. These findings are part of Spotify’s annual Loud & Clear report, which aims to provide transparency regarding artist earnings and underscores the platform's deepening investment in Africa’s music ecosystem since its 2018 launch in South Africa.