The Music Market in Japan
- Japan is the 2nd largest music market in the world after the USA in terms of sales.
- The population of just the Tokyo metropolitan area is 38 million. (Total Population of Japan: 124 million)
- Japanese spend more money on music per person than anyone else in the world.
- In 2024, streaming made up about 92% of all digital music sales in Japan.
- The most popular digital music platforms in Japan are Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, AWA, Line Music, kkbox
- The Last Dinner Party (UK), Boygenius (USA) and Liana Flores (UK) received the 2025 "Best New International Artist" Japan Gold Disc Award for highest sales in Japan.
- There are fans in Japan for all styles of music in any language—from Hawaiian, Country, Bossa Nova, Folk, New Age, Jazz, and Bluegrass to Metal, Punk, Alt Rock, Hip Hop, R&B, EDM, Reggae, and everything in between. See what foreign music is popular right now in Japan on Apple Music and Spotify.
* Data provided by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) and International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI)
If you are in the business of making and selling music, then Japan is your main market and should not be ignored.
In this website you will find info and resources to help foreign indie bands/artists, managers and record labels sell and promote music in Japan. Please read the various sections and articles to gain insight into the Japanese music market.
Many indie bands/artists and record labels from all over the world rely on Japan as a source of fans and revenue.
TopMusic.jp (Top Music Japan) is a platform that helps Japanese music fans, media and industry people discover, follow and connect with artists and music creators from around the world. Artists (managers, labels) in any genre and from any country can quickly and easily create a Free Artist Page in Japanese and access resources to market their music in Japan. You can also add your release, music video and tour info.
Submit Artist | Release | Video | Tour Info
See the indie artists/bands from your country that are actively promoting their music in Japan.
See the indie artists/bands from your country that are performing live in Japan.
Click here to book shows/tour in Japan
How do I promote my music in Japan?
The first steps in promoting your music in Japan is to create a Japanese web page and to make your music available on popular music platforms in Japan.
Create a free Japanese web page
The goal of promotion is to get Japanese consumers to learn about you and your music (i.e. become a fan) and to stream/download/license your music and buy your merch—thus creating revenues for you and hopefully offsetting the cost of marketing. Even if your end goal is not to make any money and just to spread your music in Japan, then you still require a Japanese web page and distribution in Japan.
Promoting your music is the same in Japan as in any country. This includes things such as performing live shows in Japan and advertising/publicity in Japanese media. Fortunately, there are some affordable services available to market your music in Japan.
