Adult Music Fans Fuel Sales Tue Apr 20, 2004 03:08 AM ET
By Mike Levin
NEW YORK (Billboard) - Every day in the United States, about 10,000 people become "grownups." The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that's how many people mark their 30th birthday each day.
For the music business, that means some 3.5 million customers per year presumably are shucking off the tribal, image-driven music of their youth and moving into the individualistic, melody-driven repertoire of maturity.
It's a theory supported by numbers. Figures from the Recording Industry Assn. of America, research firm NPD Group and some of the country's leading retailers show that during the past decade, sales of music for grownups are booming at a time when overall industry figures have slid drastically.
Of course, younger fans also purchase adult-oriented repertoire. But for the third consecutive year, over-30s are the only group to buy more albums than they did the year before.
Today, the 35- to 44-year-old consumer buys as many records as teenagers, according to the NPD Group. In 2003, over-30s bought 417 million albums; 15-24s purchased 246 million. Adults now purchase 56% of all records, and analysts believe that could hit 60% by 2005.
"Adult music continues to be among our top two or three segments, and it's growing in a down market because it's recapturing what made contemporary music good in the first place," says Kevin Cassidy, executive VP of sales, operations and product at Tower Records. "I guess it's cool to be a singer/songwriter again."
Young, melody-oriented stars like Norah Jones and Josh Groban appeal across the demographic spectrum. But the success of new albums and catalog product from legacy artists -- Harry Connick Jr., Jackson Browne, Hall & Oates, Rod Stewart, Bette Midler, Michael McDonald and others -- testifies to the strength of music for grownups. So do the trends toward crossover success within the pop, rock, country, jazz and roots genres.
"The adult buyers never went away, they just got bored for a while," says John Rollins, publisher of Tracks, the first music magazine to target exclusively the over-30 music market. "Now the baby boomers are re-engaging, and they're the first generation that, as they get older, wants to stay contemporary with pop culture."
Record companies and distributors are catching on. When Tracks launched last fall with Sting on the cover, Rollins says, the magazine sold twice as much advertising as expected.
"There aren't many serving this market, which is a bit of a surprise considering the numbers I've been looking at for five years," he adds. "It's pretty obvious the adult consumer is demanding attention."
During the past year, The Billboard 200 albums chart has confirmed the sales strength of the adult-oriented artists cited above and others, including John Mayer, Santana and Luther Vandross. The trend is also promising for the bottom line of the music business. Marketing executives see an adult demographic willing to spend $18.99 on a CD by a recognizable artist because they believe it will deliver high value for money.
The key to marketing music for grownups is all about helping adult consumers discover songs and artists that resonate in their lives, Tower's Cassidy says.
"They want to tell a story of discovery to their friends, about finding some great new stuff Bette Midler has put out or a newcomer named Norah Jones who sounds fantastic and they'd never heard of before," he explains. "As the current industry consolidation continues, there is room for majors and indies to boutique artists like these, where sales of 100,000 rather than 5 million means success."
Even though fans older than 30 are three times less likely than younger music buyers to accept music recommendations, according to NPD research, they still seek that advice from sources they trust, including friends and alternative media channels.
These fans have been called the "NPR demo" for their responsiveness to music exposed through alternative channels like National Public Radio.
Russ Crupnick, VP of the NPD Group, thinks the renaissance of adult consumers is the best thing that could happen to the music business after three straight years of declining sales.
"This is turning out to be a much larger segment than ever believed," he says. "Adults show less price sensitivity, and they're more disposed to browsing the shelves."
So an adult music buyer won't quibble about a price tag if the music is worthwhile. That's also clear on the concert scene, where acts like the Rolling Stones, the Who, Eric Clapton and the Eagles can get away with charging hundreds of dollars for each ticket.
A willingness to pay for perceived value is also evident online.
As legitimate online music services such as Apple Computer's iTunes have emerged (and as the Recording Industry Assn. of America takes legal action to stem unauthorized music downloading), fewer music fans over 30 have engaged in illegal file sharing, according to the NPD Group. Adult music buyers represent 31% of the illegal downloading population, down from 42% 12 months ago. With those adult fans purchasing music instead, either offline or on, the music business has reason to celebrate for the first time in many years.
Reuters/Billboard
