Starbucks’ relationship with music has evolved significantly from its music beginnings in the 1990s, where jazz and blues dominated the ambiance of its stores, to an expansive multi-genre offering by 2024.
That said, where’s all the rap and hard rock?
Initially, the coffee chain’s music program was designed to complement the ‘experience of coffee’, creating a soothing and unique atmosphere in stores through jazz and blues compilations. Customers were drawn to these collections, which were available for purchase on CD, reflecting the physical distribution model of the time. This partnership between coffee and music was a natural extension of Starbucks’ mission to create not just a place to buy coffee but a community space for relaxation and cultural enrichment.
By 2024, Starbucks had expanded its music offering far beyond these original genres, embracing multiple streaming options through platforms like Spotify. A quick look at Starbucks’ official Spotify playlists shows a wide range of genres including indie, pop, classical, and world music, reflecting the diverse tastes of its global customer base. This shift from in-store CD sales to streaming platforms marked a dramatic transformation in how Starbucks distributed music, making it more accessible to a broader audience through a platform that many users engage with regularly.
Despite the growth in genres, rap and modern rock are largely absent from Starbucks’ playlists. While hip-hop and R&B are represented, rap music’s heavier lyrical themes seem less aligned with the relaxed, welcoming atmosphere Starbucks aims to create in its stores. Similarly, contemporary rock, especially the more energetic or rebellious varieties, is also notably missing. Instead, Starbucks appears to favor genres that maintain a calm and approachable environment, aligning with its brand identity. The decision to omit these genres is likely strategic, focusing on maintaining a consistent in-store experience that appeals to a broad customer base while avoiding more polarizing musical styles.
As of today, Starbucks operates over 36,000 stores globally, with a significant proportion of these playing music throughout the day to enhance the customer experience. The cost of music in such a widespread setting is substantial. Businesses like Starbucks typically pay licensing fees to organizations such as ASCAP and BMI to legally play music in their stores. For a large corporation like Starbucks, these fees can range from $200 to $2,000 per store annually. Extrapolating from Starbucks’ global store count, the company could be paying upwards of $7 million to $72 million per year on music licensing alone, depending on the agreements and country-specific regulations. That’s our estimates based on known factors of fees and store count.
This transformation showcases Starbucks’ commitment to enhancing the customer experience and keeping pace with technological advancements, extending the reach of its curated musical experience well beyond its physical stores.
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