The PopBoard NRW has commissioned several studies to examine the many facets of the music ecosystem in North Rhine-Westphalia. The “Sounds Like NRW” study is part of a large-scale empirical investigation in the sense of an inventory of North Rhine-Westphalia as a pop location. In the course of the survey on the working and production conditions of musicians in the field of pop music, contacts of over 2500 bands and solo artists were compiled and integrated into the pop map.

This report presents the findings on the situation of pop musicians in North Rhine-Westphalia and takes a systematic and differentiated look at the working and production conditions of pop musicians. It is aimed at all (pop) musicians residing in North Rhine-Westphalia, regardless of age or career situation. The results presented here are based on information from 622 musicians who responded to the extensive questionnaire between December 2022 and February 2023. The majority of respondents live in the larger and major cities of North Rhine-Westphalia; however, thanks to targeted management, it was possible to recruit respondents from all five administrative districts and to represent almost all 53 districts in the sample.

Among other things, the study analyzes the activities of musicians (e.g. concerts, music lessons and rehearsals), their economic and professional situation (e.g. income and fee levels), their networks (e.g. cooperation with other players in the music industry), the use of funding and the assessment of NRW as a location for pop music musicians. Based on this data, this report evaluates the production, working and structural conditions of pop musicians in NRW.

The results of this study are helpful for an objective, evidence-based and constructive debate that addresses musicians themselves on the one hand and policy-makers from administration, politics and associations at municipal and state level on the other. Acute shocks, triggered by the coronavirus pandemic or wars, as well as longer-term upheavals pose challenges for all (music) stakeholders. Scientific research can provide orientation and help to shed more light on framework conditions and systematically answer current questions – e.g. in the debate about (minimum) fees, funding policy, discrimination, participation, sustainability or the resilience of the music ecosystem as a whole.