On Thursday (Oct. 17) at the Amsterdam Dance Event, representatives from SoundCloud, along with Dutch producer Mau P, took part in a panel during which SoundCloud revealed that electronic music listeners are the most engaged demographic on the platform, among other insights.
This takeaway is based on data that found that electronic music fans over-index for all music activities on SoundCloud, company representatives said, adding that compared to fans of other genres, electronic music fans are 52% more likely to comment, 104% more likely to share music and 85% more likely to repost.
SoundCloud has long been a key hub for electronic music producers, offering a place where remixes and live sets, which aren’t available on many other DSPs, can live alongside new productions, creating a catalog that’s unique to the platform. The way SoundCloud allows for direct artist-to-fan communication has also helped foster the kind of superfans the general industry has become increasingly interested in finding and cultivating. As Jack Bridges of SoundCloud said during a panel this past April, “A lot more artists and labels go to SoundCloud early… and build records from nothing and by artists messaging their fans directly because we have the tools to do that.”
The platform is becoming increasingly popular among producers. The company reports that the platform is seeing increased uploads of electronic music, with those uploads projected to rise by approximately 21% in 2024 compared to last year. Plays of electronic music genres on the platform have also grown, by roughly 6% since 2022, with electronic music expected to account for nearly 22% of all plays on the platform this year.
And while electronic music is a truly global genre, some areas naturally over-index, with SoundCloud finding that Vietnam has the third largest electronic listener base. Elsewhere, Central and Northern Europe have the most consistent and engaged SoundCloud electronic listeners, while Belgium, Austria and Germany are among the top countries where electronic music is the platform’s most-streamed genre.
In terms of subgenres, house music gets the most SoundCloud plays, listening time and listeners. Hardcore is second in plays and listening time, while trance is second in the number of listeners and third in plays and listening time. SoundCloud reports that trance is also the fastest-growing genre, with a 24% increase in listening time and an 11% rise in listeners since 2023.