A global, story-first recap of the year music stopped chasing growth, and started chasing control. 2025 was the “control” year If one theme defined 2025, it was control : Control of distribution  (who owns the pipes and the access to DSPs) Control of rights and licensing  (especially in AI and short-form video) Control of margins  (platforms and majors pushing toward profitability) Control of fan relationships  (direct channels, ticketing, merch, experiences) The industry did