Royalties generated by Indian artists on Spotify rose 29% in 2025 from the previous year, according to the company’s annual Loud & Clear data, with every major Indian language contributing to the increase.
Spotify presented the findings at a Loud & Clear event in India focused on artist-first music, where Punjabi editor Mehak Chauhan Bhullar moderated a panel with Dhruvank Vaidya, Spotify India’s head of music and podcasts, and artists Aditya Rikhari and Simran Choudhary.
The growth translated into higher earnings for artists. The number generating more than 10 million Indian rupees (INR 10 million) annually grew 21% year over year, while the number earning more than INR 50 million doubled since 2023.
- First-time global listens to Indian artists reached 12.8 billion in 2025.
- Total streams of Indian artists neared 335 billion, or more than 20 billion hours of music.
- 90% of tracks on Spotify’s Top 50 India chart were by Indian artists.
Independent music and regional languages#
I-Pop, popular Indian music released outside Bollywood film soundtracks, accounted for half of Spotify’s 2025 year-end top 10 in India. Tracks by Kushagra, Anuv Jain, Faheem Abdullah, and Jasleen Royal charted alongside film favorites. Aditya Rikhari‘s track "Sahiba" held the No. 1 spot on Spotify in India for more than 11 consecutive weeks.
"Streaming changed the scale of what was possible for me as an independent artist," Rikhari said. "Songs that started from a very personal place were able to reach listeners across the country, sometimes long after they were released. Spotify’s discovery tools, in particular, helped my music reach a bigger audience. To every fan of mine who aspires to become a musician, just put your work out there. You never know where it might travel."
On Spotify’s 2025 Global Impact List, which measures top songs beyond their home country, 11 of the top 15 most exported Indian songs came directly from artists outside a film soundtrack. Film remained a discovery pathway: Dhurandhar, one of the biggest film albums of 2025, featured independent artists including Simran Choudhary.
"Streaming has completely changed what it means to be a Punjabi artist today," Choudhary said. "You no longer have to wait for a big label or a traditional industry gatekeeper to take your music to the world. For an independent female artist like me, that ability to build a direct relationship with listeners has been incredibly empowering."
Regional-language music saw some of the largest year-over-year increases in generated royalties. Haryanvi streams rose nearly sevenfold from February 2023 to February 2026, making it one of the fastest-growing languages on the platform.
"Two years ago, artists performing in Haryanvi or Malayalam languages didn’t have the kind of reach they do today," said Vaidya. "The audience was always there; what Spotify built was the infrastructure to surface it, monetize it, and ensure artists earned from it."
Spotify’s RADAR program is expanding to Malayalam this year, following Punjabi and Tamil.
International reach and women artists#
More than 40% of all royalties earned by Indian artists on Spotify in 2025 came from listeners outside India. Anirudh Ravichander‘s Tamil soundtrack for Coolie crossed 100 million streams in 10 days and earned a Times Square billboard in New York City. Sai Abhyankkar and Sai Smriti‘s Tamil single "Aasa Kooda (from ‘Think Indie’)" hit 238 million streams. Hanumankind, a rapper born in the Indian state of Kerala, saw "Big Dawgs (feat. Kalmi)" reach 360 million streams and hit No. 1 on a Spotify global chart.
Spotify also highlighted Punjabi music on its global RADAR playlist, spotlighting Tegi Pannu and Watan Sahi.
Women artists gained traction through programs including EQUAL and RADAR. In 2025, local streams of Indian women artists grew 27% year over year, while international streams grew 7%.
