Year-End Insight: The Artist Development Opportunity In India’s Booming Live Concert Economy

For decades, India’s music landscape has been defined almost entirely by the playback ecosystem. Film dictated the sound of the nation, and as a result the infrastructure that typically surrounds artists in global markets never had the chance to fully form here. Managers, management companies, A&R departments, long-term development teams, none of them were core components of India’s music economy. Instead, the industry relied on event planners, promoters, and booking agents who often stepped into managerial roles by default, handling logistics and opportunities on an ad hoc basis rather than shaping long-term artistic direction. Labels, too, focused heavily on building catalogues rather than building careers.

On the indie side, artist development did exist in spirit, with artists shaping their own sounds, images, and communities, but the independent space was too small, too undercapitalized, and too fragmented for the concept to take hold at scale. For the most part, the machinery that typically nurtures and develops global artists simply did not exist in India because there was no commercial incentive for it to exist.

That dynamic began to shift significantly in the last five to seven years. As India’s live touring economy finally unlocked, the emphasis moved from simply staging events to selling tickets, and ticket sales required something Indian film music alone could not engineer: real fandom. Promoters quickly discovered that audiences would pay for artists they connected with, not just artists they recognized. In turn, artists realized that fandom is not an accident. It is the result of deliberate cultivation, creative consistency, and a clear identity, which is exactly the kind of work that falls under artist development.

Looking at international markets makes this clearer. The biggest artists and bands in the world do not reach that status through songs alone. Their careers are built through structured development involving persona creation, sonic identity, styling, branding, A&R, touring strategy, social media narrative, PR, merchandise ecosystems, live show design, choreography, and the assembling of specialized touring teams. Every layer reinforces how an artist is perceived, which is why global acts often have such powerful brand affinity and long-lasting cultural pull.

Indian artists today are increasingly aware that replicating that level of impact, first within India’s growing live economy and eventually on the world stage, requires similar investment in development. Talent and good songs are essential, but they are only the foundation. What creates demand, loyalty, and scale is the deliberate shaping of an artist’s world.

This is where companies like The Hello Group come into the picture. We believe in empowering artists who have the vision and the raw ability but need structured development, strategic guidance, and the right ecosystem to reach their potential. By focusing on long-term growth, musically, creatively, and commercially, we aim to help Indian artists build the kind of resonance and sustainability that global markets have demonstrated for decades. India’s live economy is booming, and with the right development pathways, its artists are now positioned to boom with it.