A new survey intended to map the music industry in Scotland has been launched in partnership with the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA) and led by the University of Glasgow.

The intention of the study, is to measure the value – economical, social and cultural – of Scotland’s music industry, and the contribution made by those who work in it, whether freelance, part-time or full-time.

The project is part of a PhD project by Robert Allan, a founder member of Glasvegas, and assisted by Matt Brennan aka Citizen Bravo, a reader in popular music at the University of Glasgow’s College of Arts, and formerly one third of Zoey Van Goey.

Spanning 3.5 years, the project launched in December 2019 and was designed to explore how much money the sector generates in sales and services annually.

Having launched just three months before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the timing of this research is seen as crucial in gauging the value of a sector in urgent need of support, having been severely impacted by lockdowns and Coronavirus mitigation measures.

The research will highlight how much money the Scottish music industry generates annually, how many full-time and part-time workers are employed in it and which of the industry’s sub-sectors are represented in Scotland.

It aims to provide a robust map of the music industry in Scotland, and will also focus on the impact of the pandemic on a sector which was found to generate £453 million for the Scottish economy through music tourism in 2019 (‘Music By Numbers 2020’, UK Music).

Matt Brennan added: “​​It goes without saying that the Scottish music sector is valuable, but with this survey we hope to gather both numbers and narratives to better document and understand this value in detail. The university is excited to support Robert as a doctoral candidate and to collaborate with the SMIA on this PhD project.”

Robert Allan, said: “This research will be invaluable to all of those operating within the music sector in Scotland from grassroots up to the commercial level. The more responses the survey receives, the more robust the research project will be. By successfully mapping and measuring the industry, we can identify its strengths and weaknesses and implement real change at policy level from within the government.

The survey is seeking responses until the deadline of September 7th 2021. Anyone taking part in the questionnaire will be entered into a prize draw to win £250 worth of record store tokens; an industry-led initiative by the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA) designed to support independent record stores across the UK.

You can take the survey now via the University of Glasgow website.