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Here's Why Apple Music Is Growing Insanely Fast

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Apple (AAPL - Free Report) caused quite the uproar this week when it announced that its latest generation of phones, the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, would not feature the industry-standard 3.5mm headphone jack. Nevertheless, Apple’s keynote on Wednesday didn’t just focus on the iPhone, and, among other things, the company shared some surprising information about the growth of Apple Music.

Apple CEO Tim Cook started the event by flaunting Apple Music’s impressive growth; the relatively young music streaming service already has 17 million paid subscribers after launching in June of 2015. For comparison, industry-leading Spotify has about 39 million paid subscribers after eight years.

(Also Read: Which Music Streaming Service is the Best Right Now?)

How is it that Apple Music has been able to outpace the rest of the music streaming industry? Look no further than the explanation Cook himself offered onstage this week:

“Apple Music is the premiere destination for new artists and existing artists to launch their exclusive music,” Cook boasted.

Setting aside any opinions on the practice of artists releasing their music exclusively on one platform, Cook is absolutely correct. Apple has made a habit of signing the world’s biggest artists to deals that see their newest music remain exclusive on Apple Music until two weeks after the original release date.

Are you a big fan of Drake, Taylor Swift, Frank Ocean, Future, or Dr. Dre? You’ll be needing an Apple Music subscription to keep up with their newest music.

Just take a look at the Billboard Top 200 Albums list right now. The number two album this week is Florida Georgia Line’s Dig Your Roots, which is only available to stream on Apple Music. Last week’s number one album, Frank Ocean’s long-awaited Blonde, just debuted on Spotify after remaining an Apple Music exclusive for weeks. Shooting up the charts is Travis Scott’s sophomore album Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight, another Apple Music exclusive.

Based purely on music, Apple Music genuinely feels like the best option for users. Spotify does not do exclusive releases, and although Tidal has deals with Kanye West, Beyoncé, and Rihanna, its overall library is limited.

Apple Music is currently adding about one million subscribers a month thanks to its exclusive release strategy. That’s definitely some good news in the face of the backlash from the removal of the headphone jack.

For more coverage on Apple’s keynote this week, check out the latest episode of the Zacks Friday Finish Line podcast:

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