Independent Music 2026 — STVDIO

Independent catalog now takes 46.7% of global recorded music, 35% of streaming consumption and 40% of album sales. STVDIO's first quarterly report, out Tuesday with Secretly Distribution, opens by explaining why that is not the win it reads as: enough distributors have been bought by majors and private equity that a self-released artist can route a record through major-label pipes without ever knowing it.