In 2021, Dua Lipa’s “Levitating” became the most streamed song in the U.S. with 626 million streams. On average, if an artist earns .04 cents per stream minus expenses, fees and other outstanding royalties, how much streaming money actually ended up in Dua Lipa’s pocket? Those details lie in her label deal. So how are royalties broken down? What gets left to the artist? And does it vary by streaming service? This is Billboard Explains: The Value of a Music Stream.
