Water & Music, a leading research hub for the music industry, has partnered with Base for Music to conduct a study exploring the return on investment of digital campaigns.A crisis point in the music industryThe music industry has never had so many tools to promote an artist: Meta Ads, Spotify for Artists, Google Ads, TikTok Ads, Chartmetric, Laylo, Hypeddit, feature fm, ...And yet, despite this abundance, a paradox remains: industry professionals are spending more and more… while having less and less control over their results.Which campaign generated which streams?Who are the real superfans?What is the true ROI?...Algorithmic amplification: the key to a successful campaignBehind every high-performing campaign lies one crucial phenomenon: algorithmic amplification.This happens when streaming platforms (Spotify, Deezer, Apple Music…) detect strong signals (rapid growth, high save rates, intense engagement) and begin pushing the music automatically through playlists and recommendations.The challenge of a campaign is therefore not only to generate listens, but to reach that “tipping point” where the algorithm takes over.The real question is: how do you get there—and how do you measure it?Two revealing case studiesThe Water & Music study draws on two artists using Base for Music tools to illustrate this mechanism:KLV SLY (Tunecore) , an emerging artist, who grew from 4K to 20K monthly listeners in just 12 months.Cerrone (Because Music), an established artist and disco legend, who successfully reactivated a cult catalog while winning over a new generation of listeners, achieving 41% growth in 12 months.In both cases, the same logic applies: moving beyond chance to transform every euro invested into a predictable, measurable—and even forecastable—growth trajectory via the ROI Stream.The ROIS concept: reinventing ROI for musicTo address this need, Base for Music developed the concept of ROIS (Return On Investment Stream).Unlike traditional ROI, ROIS measures the return on investment of streaming campaigns by factoring in:the streams generated by a campaign,their algorithmic amplification effect,their impact on fanbase growth,and, over time, on indirect revenues (touring, merchandising, partnerships).But above all, ROIS introduces a new key dimension: stream prediction.In other words, it doesn’t just measure past results—it anticipates the future trajectory of an artist, based on their investments, strong signals, and algorithmic potential.In short, ROIS finally makes it possible to calculate the true return on every investment in music promotion, by combining measurement, amplification, and prediction.Towards truly measurable music marketingThe study proves it is possible to move from opaque marketing to measurable marketing.Before:❓ Campaigns run with no visibility❓ Streams fluctuating without explanation❓ ROI impossible to calculateAfter:✅ Clear attribution between ads and streams✅ Detection of true growth signals✅ A predictable ROIS thanks to stream forecastingWant to learn more?Detailed figures, strategies, and complete charts are available in the full Water & Music x Base for Music report.Contact our team to receive the full study and discover how to turn your streaming campaigns into measurable growth: raphael@baseformusic.fr