News

The Super Bowl is a massive stage for the artists who get the opportunity to perform. The Nielsen Company offered some perspective last week, sharing some digital sales data for songs and artists who recently performed. Building off that data, we did a little more analysis to offer a bit more macro view.

Here’s another way to look at it: for 20 songs that were played at halftime of the last 3 Super Bowls, the average increase in sales was 120% the following week (compared with the week prior to the Super Bowl). Additionally, for 14 songs that were featured in commercials during the Super Bowl in 2012, an average 197% increase in sales was seen the following week.

None of this is likely terribly surprising, but nonetheless we think it’s interesting. It’s another example of the interrelationship between music and other forms of media, including television. We noted before how ratings for music award shows like the Grammys are skyrocketing, and that music-themed shows are regularly among the top rated. Music is a must-have, whether it’s a Presidential inauguration or the Super Bowl. So, when it comes to halftime, don’t turn the channel – it may be as interesting as the game!

Joshua P. Friedlander
Vice President, Strategic Data Analysis, RIAA