Music industry finds groove in digital beats: How well can it leverage it?

The boom in audio streaming, short video apps and social media gives a much-needed boost to the sector. How well can it leverage it?

MC Stan aka Altaf Shaikh, a Pune-based hip-hop rapper, had hit a million streams a month. That is when, in September 2020, he signed up with Believe India to launch his album Tadipar. Believe promoted and distributed the staccato beats of the story of Shaikh’s life. MC Stan is now at five million streams — meaning his songs are played that many times — a month. He also has over a million You­Tube subscribers. For a new rapper, these are pretty good numbers, say analysts.
 
Shaikh is among the 600 artistes and labels such as Desi Music Factory (Hindi),