A new survey released by the MEAA has revealed widespread exploitation of professional musicians, revealing that 44% of musicians earn less than $250 per gig, and nearly half made less than $15,000 per year.
A new survey from Musicians Australia, a division of the Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA), has further exposed the ongoing exploitation of professional musicians from the music industry, which reportedly generated almost $9 billion in revenue each year.
The survey would interview over 300 musicians, who would relay their experience working in the music industry, and demonstrate how their already shockingly low pay has only decreased since COVID. Furthermore, the survey would tap into anxieties that AI is introducing, just weeks after AI country track ‘Walk My Way‘ claimed the top spot on Billboard’s Country Digital Songs sales chart.
Musician Australia’s findings would reveal an industry where musicians continue to be overworked, underpaid and exploited. This comes all the more disappointing following Live Nation’s own report that found that Australians’ preferred form of entertainment was live music, which would rank higher than movies and sports.
What were the MEAA survey findings?
Of the 300 musicians surveyed, 44% reported earning less than $250 per gig, which was the minimum pay benchmark set by the MEAA. The survey would also reveal that nearly half of the musicians surveyed had earned less than $15,000 annually from their music work, with 31% earning under $6,900. Additionally, 59% of gigs had failed to pay superannuation.
- 44% of musicians earn less than $250 per gig
- Nearly half earn less than $15,000 per year
- 31% earn under $6,900 annually from music
- 59% of gigs don’t pay superannuation
- 25% of performances violated contract terms
- 68% were paid for every gig (up from 53% in 2020)
- 85% concerned about unauthorised AI licensing deals
- Almost 75% say copyright protections are inadequate
“These findings paint a clear picture: musicians are overworked, underpaid, and undervalued,” said MEAA Chief Executive Erin Madeley.
“MEAA is calling on the music industry to pay up and provide fair wages, safe conditions, and sustainable careers for working musicians in Australia.”
You can read the full survey on MEAA’s website here.
