Most Music Discovery Still Comes From Radio

While we're increasingly living in a streaming world, radio is still our go-to source when it comes to discovering new music, according to the latest study from Nielsen Music. 51% of Americans still discover most of the new music they listen to via radio, even though on-demand streaming increased by a whopping 54% last year to over 164 billion streams.

The study also found that 243 million people age 12 and over tune into radio every week, which is 91% of the population within the top 250 markets. Of that, 23% listen in the car, while 16% listen to the radio at work.

What are the top radio formats? No surprises here, according tot he survey.

1. Pop Contemporary Hits Radio (CHR) - 12.3%
2. Country - 9.8%
3. Hot Adult Contemporary (AC) - 7.1%
4. Rhythmic Contemporary Hit Radio - 6.7%
5. Adult Contemporary - 5.9%
6. Urban Contemporary - 5.8%
7. Mexican Regional - 5.2%
8. Alternative - 5.0%
9. Classic Rock - 3.9%
10. News Talk Information  - 3.5%

Of these 10 formats, Country Music grew the most significantly in the first half of last year, especially for listeners in the 18 to 34 age group.

It appears that radio is very music like the music business in that its demise is consistently predicted, yet it never seems to go away. Just like the music business, it continues to evolve and roll with the times.