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2025 Q2 Earnings: Here’s What Every Music Company Made

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The only sure thing in this earnings season is unpredictability. While the global economy remains resilient in the face of U.S. tariffs, and U.S. gross domestic product grew 3% in Q2, stocks took a hit from a weak U.S. jobs report on Aug. 1, and some experts believe a constant drip, drip, drip of negative developments will cause “death by a thousand cuts.”

Music companies’ early results also offered mixed signals. Spotify, the first music company out of the gate on July 29, posted solid year-over-year growth but disappointed investors with weaker-than-expected guidance for the third quarter. Spotify shares dipped 11.6% as a result. Two days later, Universal Music Group (UMG) posted 4.5% revenue growth and 8.5% subscription growth. But investors were hesitant — was it a lack of margin improvement or concerns about cash flow? — and UMG’s share price dipped 5.2% the following day.

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Below are summaries, listed in alphabetical order, of every music company to report second quarter earnings as of Aug. 7. Billboard will update the page as more results are announced. (If the summary includes a hyperlink, click on it to get the full story.)

  • Cumulus Media. The No. 3 radio company in the U.S. posted a 9.2% drop in revenue and an 11.3% decline in adjusted EBITDA. Broadcast radio revenue was down 13.0% and digital fell 1.4%. CEO Mary Berner referred to a “challenging” advertising environment for legacy media companies and noted that Cumulus created an additional $5 million in cost reductions in the quarter, bringing its total annualized cost cuts to $175 million over the last five years. 
  • Deezer: Total revenue was flat at 267.1 million euros ($298.1 million), and subscribers fell 7.6% to 9.2 million (subscriptions through B2B partnerships fell 21% to 3.9 million). But the French music streamer managed its costs, resulting in improved operating loss and adjusted EBITDA. The company reiterated its belief that it will finish 2025 with both positive cash flow (for the second consecutive year) and positive adjusted EBITDA. Go here for the full article.
  • HYBE: South Korea’s HYBE said on Wednesday (Aug. 6) that its second quarter revenue rose 10.2% year-over-year to $516.7 million, while operating profit jumped nearly 30% to $48.3 million due to successful global tours and releases from several of its artists, including BTS members Jin and j-hope. Recorded music revenue fell by nearly 8.5%, but that was offset by double-digit year-over-year increases in merchandise and touring revenue. The company said news of BTS members completing their military service also drove record-high engagement for its superfan platform Weverse. For more, read the full article.
  • Reservoir Media: Quarterly revenue rose 8% to $37.2 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2026 on strong recorded music and sync revenue. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), a popular measure of profitability, was up 10% to $13.9 million. Acquisitions in the quarter, which contribute to the company’s revenue from catalogs, include a strategic partnership struck with Fool’s Gold and an investment in an experiential entertainment company called Lightroom. Go here for more details.
  • SiriusXM: SiriusXM reported that overall revenue of $2.14 billion in the second quarter fell 2% from the year-ago quarter, pressured by lower subscriber growth, a legal settlement and higher operating expenses. The satellite radio giant is rolling out a new $7 subscription option to try to boost lagging ad revenue and subscriber growth. SiriusXM CEO Jennifer Witz said they will cautiously roll out the new offering, as they push other initiatives aimed at improving their standing amid a “challenging…ad market.” The full story is here.
  • SM Entertainment: Album sales and events revenue from RIIZE and NCT WISH helped SM Entertainment’s consolidated revenue increase 19.3% to $216.5 million. Album and digital music revenue jumped 37.9% to $70.8 million, and merchandise and licensing revenue rose 39.6% to $45.7 million. Concert revenue was flat at $24.0 million. For a breakdown of subsidiary revenue, check out the article.
  • Sony Music: Led by Bad Bunny’s DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, SZA’s SOS and Sleep Token’s Even in Arcadia, Sony Music’s consolidated revenue up 5.3% to $3.22 billion in the first fiscal quarter ended June 30. A strong yen made year-over-year comparisons a challenge. Recorded music was up 0.7% to $2.09 billion but improved 8.4% on a dollar basis (Sony does not report results in constant currency). Music publishing revenue rose 2.1% as reported; on a dollar-denominated basis, is improved 9.8%. More info at the full article.
  • Sonos. Revenue of $344.8 million was down 13.2% from the prior-year period, the company announced Aug. 7. Gross margin fell to 43.4% from 44.7% as CFO Saori Casey noted “a complex environment marked by tariffs and an uncertain macroeconomic backdrop.” Go here for Billboard‘s coverage of Sonos, its recent layoffs and how it cut sales projections after a disastrous app redesign in May 2024. 
  • Spotify: The streaming giant enjoyed another quarter in which it beat its own subscriber and monthly user growth targets, but a lukewarm financial forecast from executives and lower quarterly operating income due to currency fluctuations and taxes caused a sharp one-day selloff in its stock. Check out our article about the earnings release and a follow-up story with takeaways from the company’s second quarter results.
  • Universal Music Group: Revenue increased 4.5% to $3.38 billion while recorded music subscription revenue rose 8.5% to $1.36 billion (all growth figures in constant currency). Elsewhere, music publishing soared 14.5% with a boost from Chord Music Partners, but both merchandising and physical recorded music dipped. For more, read our earnings story and a follow-up article with takeaways from the results.
  • Warner Music Group: WMG reported revenue grew to $1.7 billion in the last quarter thanks to a double-digit increase in publishing revenue and strong subscription streaming returns. That helped offset the impact of losing BMG as a distribution client and helped push Warner’s stock price up by 3.5%. All the details at the full article. More insights are in the follow-up article.
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‘We’re About to Do a F—ing Podcast’: Taylor Swift to Appear on Travis Kelce’s ‘New Heights’

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After sending the Internet into a frenzy with hints that Taylor Swift would soon be making her New Heights debut, Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce have confirmed that the pop star is indeed joining them on the podcast — and she just might make a big announcement during the episode.

Late Monday night (Aug. 13), the two brothers officially revealed that they would be welcoming the Kansas City Chiefs tight end’s superstar girlfriend as a guest on the show by sharing an adorable video on social media. In the clip, Swift sits next to Travis and compliments his blue sweater, to which he replies: “It’s the color of your eyes, sweetie … it’s why we match so well.”

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“We’re about to do a f—ing podcast!” the singer then says in disbelief.

Swift’s cameo on New Heights will premiere at 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday (Aug. 13).

The big reveal comes just hours after New Heights first teased that the 14-time Grammy winner would finally be appearing on the program, something fans have been asking for since Swift first started dating Travis about two years ago. Earlier Monday, the Kelce brothers shared a cryptic promo image with a sparkly orange background and a blacked-out silhouette of a mystery woman, whom Swifties quickly concluded must be the musician.

Also adding to the hype, Swift’s official fan account, Taylor Nation, shared 12 images of the artist wearing orange outfits on stage at her Eras Tour. “Thinking about when she said ‘See you next era…,'” the caption read.

With that post coming just 12 minutes after the New Heights teaser, fans were immediately certain that the podcast would be the platform on which Swift announces her highly anticipated 12th studio album — though they’ll have to tune in Wednesday to find out for sure. Regardless of whether or not she does share TS12 news, however, the hitmaker certainly has a lot to catch up with listeners about; in the past year alone, she’s wrapped up her two-year billion-dollar Eras trek and reclaimed the master rights to her first six albums.

Plus, the New Heights episode will mark a full-circle moment for Swift and Travis no matter what, as the couple’s romance first began with the pod. Weeks after the athlete professed his crush on the singer on a July 2023 episode — telling Jason at the time that he was “butthurt” about failing to give her his phone number at an Eras show — Swift would appear at one of his home games. The rest was history.

“This all started when Travis very adorably put me on blast on his podcast, which I thought was metal as hell,” Swift recalled in her 2023 TIME Person of the Year interview. “We started hanging out right after that. So we actually had a significant amount of time that no one knew, which I’m grateful for, because we got to get to know each other. By the time I went to that first game, we were a couple.”

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MF Doom Estate Sues Temu for Selling Knock-Off Merch: ‘One of the Most Unethical Companies’

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The estate of MF Doom claims in a new lawsuit that Chinese e-commerce giant Temu is selling counterfeit versions of the late hip-hop legend’s iconic merchandise.

Gas Drawls LLC, the company that has managed MF Doom’s estate since the British-born rapper (Daniel Dumile) died suddenly in 2020, filed a federal complaint against Temu on Monday (Aug. 11).

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The lawsuit accuses Temu of selling dozens of knock-off t-shirts, hats, posters and other merchandise displaying MF Doom’s name and the signature mask he would wear while performing. These products supposedly rip off merch sold on MF Doom’s official store, but “at a far lower price point and a fraction of the quality.”

“Such product devalues the subject marks, as well as plaintiff’s proprietary and licensed products and MF Doom’s status in the hip hop milieu,” reads the complaint. “It also creates a false association between MF Doom and Temu.”

MF Doom’s estate says it particularly does not want to be associated with Temu because the Chinese e-commerce giant is “one of the most unethical companies operating in today’s global marketplace.”

The lawsuit cites “allegations of egregious and horrific business practices” against Temu, including claims that it relies on forced labor and routinely violates users’ privacy. MF Doom’s estate also doesn’t like that the counterfeit merch is sold alongside “products that shock the [conscience]” on the Temu marketplace, such as T-shirts that display gang names and homophobic language.  

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Gas Drawls brings a total of seven federal and California state claims in the lawsuit, including trademark infringement, unfair competition and misappropriation of likeness. The estate is seeking a court injunction that would force Temu to stop selling counterfeit products, plus a financial penalty.

“Plaintiff has sustained significant injury and monetary damages as a result of Temu’s wrongful acts as alleged above,” says the lawsuit. “Plaintiff is at present unable to ascertain the full extent of the monetary damages they have suffered by reason of said acts.”

Temu did not immediately return a request for comment on Monday.

Named for a track off MF Doom’s 1999 debut album Operation: Doomsday, Gas Drawls is responsible for managing the late rapper’s catalog and intellectual property. The company sells physical media and merchandise on an online store, noting that all purchases “directly support Doom’s family and the continuation of his legacy.”

Monday’s lawsuit is not the first time Gas Drawls has gone to court since MF Doom’s death. In 2023, the estate sued Eothen “Egon” Alapatt, a label executive and former MF Doom collaborator, claiming he’d stolen dozens of private notebooks in which the rapper recorded song lyrics, ideas and creative musings.

Egon denied the estate’s claims, and that lawsuit was ultimately settled out of court.

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Grand Ole Opry & Hallmark Channel Join to Celebrate Opry’s 100th Anniversary With Holiday Movie

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As the Grand Ole Opry continues to celebrate its 100th anniversary, the esteemed Nashville institution will get a little help from the Hallmark Channel in marking the centennial.

A Grand Ole Opry Christmas, an original Hallmark movie starring network stars Nikki DeLoach and Kristoffer Polaha, will begin filming this month in Nashville and will air during the channel’s 16th annual Countdown to Christmas programming. The movie will include familiar Opry faces, including Brad Paisley, who will write original music for the movie. Paisley will also write and perform the theme for the Countdown to Christmas 2025 campaign.

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The movie, whose specific air date has not been announced, involves a little time traveling: DeLoach will play the daughter of a late country music icon who gave up her own dreams of being a country songwriter following a tragic accident 30 years ago. After she agrees to represent her father at an Opry celebration, she is transported back to 1995 and reunited with an artist manager played by Polaha, as well as with her father before his untimely death.

“Our goal in this milestone year is to put the Opry, its artists and the rich songwriting traditions that have made country music a global sensation in front of more people than ever before,” said Colin Reed, executive chairman of Ryman Hospitality Properties, the Opry’s parent company, in a statement. “Our partnership with Hallmark brings these elements to life this holiday season through a creative and uplifting take on a uniquely Nashville story.”

“This is the perfect time for us to partner with this beloved, iconic American institution and create Christmas magic together,” added Darren Abbott, Hallmark’s chief brand officer. “Nikki and Kris are fan favorites, and we know they will beautifully bring to life this emotional and heartfelt story that is sure to become an instant classic.”

Paisley also weighed in, adding, “The Hallmark Channel to me is a major part of finding the joy and the spirit of the holidays. We turn it on and leave it on in our house like Christmas tree lights or decorations, it’s a major part of the atmosphere for us. I loved the challenge of creating that same magic with this music by letting it take you to the same place that these movies and this world Hallmark has built. Can’t wait for you to hear what all we’ve done. Also, knowing the Opry is the setting for one of these movies is very inspiring.”

A special line of Hallmark and Opry co-branded merchandise, including greeting cards, apparel, accessories, jewelry and gifts, will also be created to tie in with movie and will be available online at Hallmark.com and Shop.Opry.com, as well as in their physical stores.

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