Maybe music was It's better when you were a child.
That's the conclusion some might draw, based on a Luminate study released Wednesday that suggests that, amid growing nostalgia, younger audiences are starting to shift away from modern releases in favor of music released before they were born.
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According to Luminate data, music listeners aged 13 to 24—the industry's most important and often targeted audience—are becoming increasingly active in listening to music from the 1990s and earlier, while the number of listeners who cite music from the 2020s as their favorite is declining.
It's worth clarifying that the 2020s remain the most popular decade among listeners in this age group, although, as Luminate reported on Wednesday, these figures have been declining over the past five years: in 2021, 55 percent of respondents in this age group said their favorite music was released in the 2020s, but by 2025, that figure had dropped to 44 percent. Meanwhile, in 2021, 18 percent of respondents said their favorite music was from the 1990s and earlier, but last year, that figure rose to 25 percent.
Luminate's research further confirms the ongoing resurgence in popularity of 1990s music overall, as '90s music became the fastest-growing decade in terms of streams between Q2 2024 and Q2 2025, growing by eight percent. The 2000s came in second with a seven-percent increase. According to Luminate's research, the '90s also became the most popular decade among the general population, with 64 percent of respondents saying they listen to '90s music. The '80s came in second with 58 percent, followed by the 2000s with 57 percent, and the 2020s with 53 percent.
Luminate suggests that the boom of the 90s can be explained by older millennials reaching an age where their As their children became teenagers, they introduced their children to the music they enjoyed in their youth, and their children also began listening to more of that music. Luminate also suggested that this contributed to the surge in popularity of new Y2K-related artists, such as Addison Rae and Pink Pantheress. Following this logic, the coming years will likely see a revival of 2000s and 2010s music as the children of younger millennials also come of age.
The resurgence of older music can certainly be attributed to the streaming era in general, which has shown that music fans generally prefer to listen to favorite tracks from their catalog rather than newly released compositions. In 2022, the release Music Business Worldwide reported that 73% of music consumption on streaming services in the US was catalog music (music released more than 18 months ago), rather than new songs.
These habits were confirmed on the charts, with hits like Teddy Swims' "Lose Control" spending so much time on the chart Billboard Hot 100, which the publication eventually changed its rating criteria.
Also playing a role is the resurgence of interest in physical media, as vinyl has evolved from a niche audiophile collectible into a mainstream purchase for enthusiasts.
Of course, we can't forget about the media's impact on music. Michael Jackson's popularity has skyrocketed thanks to the biopic him The songs "Billie Jean" and "Beat It" are currently in the top 10 of the Spotify world chart. The series «"Very strange things »" contributed to a resurgence in popularity for Prince's songs "When Doves Cry" and "Purple Rain" when they were featured in the final season, and Kate Bush's "Runnin' Up That Hill" also experienced a huge surge in popularity thanks to the series in 2022.
Tracks from the catalog have proven popular on TikTok, with the catchy choruses and hooks of past hits becoming the backdrop for trending videos on the platform, as seen with songs like Fleetwood Mac's "Dreams" and Sophie Ellis-Bextor's "Murder on the Dance Floor.".
Luminate's study also compiled lists of the fastest-growing songs in the catalog by streams, all of which were released in the 1990s and 2000s. Imogen Heap's "Headlock" topped the list, increasing streams by 172.1 million, followed by Radiohead's "Let Down" and "Creep" in second and third place, respectively.
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