New British Artists Confirm Rock as Britain's Favourite Genre

New British Artists Confirm Rock as Britain's Favourite Genre

LONDON, May 3/PRNewswire/ --

- Rock Comes Out on Top as Record Industry Increases Consumer Choice

UK record companies offered music fans a record 31,291 new album releases
across over 16 official genres in 2005, according to figures published today
by trade association the BPI.

This is more than double the number of albums released ten years'
previously - 15,393 albums were released in 1996 - with consumer choice
growing across 16 different genres.

Online retailers are responsible for an increasing share of the albums
market and can stock a huge range of titles. Combined with the emergence of
digital music retailers, British record labels are increasingly able to
reissue back-catalogue and increase consumer choice.

But it was rock that emerged as the UK's favourite as its share of the
albums market reached 36.2% - its best ever showing and the older demographic
of downloaders has also helped rock gain a best-ever 23.5% market share of
the singles market.

The growing popularity of home-grown British bands has seen the genre
become firmly ensconced as the nations' favourite. Seven out of the Top 10
rock albums and nine out of the Top 10 rock singles were by UK artists.
British artists claimed 49.4% of last year's album sales; the highest share
since 1998.

BPI chairman Peter Jamieson said, "Few businesses offer so much choice to
the consumer as the record industry does to the music fan.

"Record companies support a hugely diverse range of genres. But
ultimately it's the music fan who decides what's successful. Last year they
decided by some margin that 2005 was predominantly a year of home-grown
British rock bands."

British bands behind growing appeal of contemporary rock

The figures, compiled from Official UK Chart Company data, show that
Coldplay's third album 'X&Y' and Kaiser Chiefs 'Employment' helped rock claim
its largest ever share of the albums market in 2005.

Rock albums now account for 36.2% of the albums market, up by 6.4% on
2004 and 13.8% on 1999.

New British artists have dominated the UK charts over the last couple of
years and 2005 was no different. But in addition to successful debut albums
from Kaiser Chiefs and KT Tunstall - established British artists such as
Coldplay, Gorillaz and Oasis returned with hit albums to help contemporary
rock increase its share of the singles and albums market.

Although pop remains the dominant genre in the singles market, claiming a
33.9% share, the rise in digital sales have helped rock increase its share by
8.4% on 2004 and a massive 36.1% on 1999.

The figures also show that middle of the road (MOR) and dance both gained
an increasing share of the albums market in 2005. While the former was
boosted by the continued success of Il Divo and Katie Melua, while dance acts
such as Prodigy, Basement Jaxx and Faithless all released successful Best-Of
albums.

The changing face of pop

Pop accounts for one in four albums sold in the UK, and it was a pop act,
James Blunt, who was the best selling artist overall in 2005 and eighteen
months after its release his debut 'Back to Bedlam' is still in the album
chart.

Robbie Williams' 'Intensive Care' and Kelly Clarkson's debut 'Breakaway'
were also amongst the year's best sellers, with mainstream pop (22.2%) still
marginally outselling contemporary rock (21.7%).

The increasing popularity of rock acts amongst young consumers, combined
with increasing competition for young consumers' disposable income and sales
lost through illegal file sharing have also affected the make up of the
albums market.

Reality shows such as Pop Idol boosted teen pop sales in the early 2000s,
but since its 1990s heyday the genre's popularity has declined from
representing 5.3% of sales in 2001 to 2.5% last year.

Contact Matt Phillips in the BPI press office on +44-207-803-1395 for
further information.

Editors Notes

About the BPI

The BPI (formerly British Phonographic Industry) is the British record
industry's trade association. It has represented the interests of British
record companies since being formally incorporated in 1973 when its principal
aim was to fight the growing problem of music piracy.

Its membership currently comprises of more than 350 companies including
all four 'major' record companies, associate members such as manufacturers
and distributors, plus hundreds of independent music companies representing
literally thousands of labels which together account for over 90% of recorded
music output in the UK.

Fig 1) Album Sales by Genre, 1998-2005

http://www.bpi.co.uk/pdf/album_sales_by_genre_2005.jpg

Source, BPI/Official UK Charts Company

Fig 2) Top 10 Rock Albums, 2005

1 X&Y Coldplay
2 Employment - Kaiser Chiefs
3 Demon Days - Gorillaz
4 Eye To The Telescope - KT Tunstall
5 Hot Fuss - Killers
6 Don't Believe The Truth - Oasis
7 American Idiot - Green Day
8 Hopes And Fears - Keane
9 Life In Slow Motion - David Gray
10 In Your Honour - Foo Fighters

Source, BPI/Official UK Charts Company

Fig 3) Top 10 Rock Singles, 2005

1 Feel Good Inc - Gorillaz
2 I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor - Arctic Monkeys
3 Dare - Gorillaz
4 Lyla - Oasis
5 The Importance Of Being Idle - Oasis
6 Dakota - Stereophonics
7 Speed Of Sound - Coldplay
8 Somewhere Else - Razorlight
9 Wake Me Up When September Ends - Green Day
10 Fix You - Coldplay

Source, BPI/Official UK Charts Company

Fig 4) Album Sales by Sub Genre, 2001-2005

http://www.bpi.co.uk/pdf/album_sales_by_subgenre_2005.jpg

Figs 5-7) Sales by Type of Music - Data Tables

http://www.bpi.co.uk/pdf/Sales_By_Type_Tables_2005.pdf

Fig 8) The UK's genres

Blues
Children's Audio
Classical
Contemporary Urban (R&B/Hip Hop)
Country
Dance
Folk
Heritage Urban (Soul)
Jazz
MOR (Easy Listening)
New Age
Pop
Reggae
Rock
Spoken Word
World

Source, Millward Brown

Source: BPI

Matt Phillips, BPI press office, +44-207-803-1395

-------
Profile: intent