Discogs’ Total Diversity Index Analyzes Users’ Data and Wide Musical Tastes


Thursday, January 10th, 2019 |

With a catalog of more than 10 million releases and an online community with nearly 5 million members, Discogs, an official WMC 2019 Brand Partner, is by far the world’s leading music database and marketplace. So it’s no surprise to learn that the Discogs team is able to run some interesting experiments and test some thought-provoking theories employing their users’ data.

One such recent theory, resulting from an in-office debate, observed the diversity of fan bases of genre-blurring artists like Flying Lotus. To test their idea, the Discogs team developed what they’re now calling the Total Diversity Index (TDI), a “new set of metrics to definitively prove how diverse an artist’s fanbase is when it comes to their musical tastes,” according to a press release.

The science and numbers behind the TDI is somewhat complex—Discogs gives a very thorough explanation on their blog, if you’re interested in learning all the details—but it essentially gathers granular collection data from Discogs’ expansive network of users to create an involved formula measuring several important factors like genre and style diversity and user collections.

After running their data-driven tests, Discogs found their theory to be correct: Flying Lotus, a primarily electronic artist who has traversed genres like experimental, electronica, hip-hop, and IDM, notched a higher TDI than your average electronic musician, even beating out notable and crossover artists like Aphex Twin and Bonobo.

The results of the TDI tests also indicated some key stastistical data relating to users’ collections: Mainly, “the fewer records someone owns, the more of a commitment it is to buy new pieces,” according to the Discogs blog post. In other words, “a collector with a small but diverse collection is making a more concerted effort to expand their horizons.”

Discogs Total Diversity Chart

Graphic of Total Diversity Index chart taken from the Discogs blog.

Via their analysis, Discogs developed a data-driven method to measure an artist’s appeal across diverse audiences. It’s a key development that can help electronic artists, especially those who have dabbled in multiple genres and have crossed into mainstream and pop territories, learn more about their followers and discover new audiences.

Read more about Discogs’ Total Diversity Index methodology and view their accompanying graphics on their blog.


Get the latest news and updates.


Subscribe

Testimonials

I’m so glad to see WMC rebooted with such thoughtful content and first-class curation. It’s been a long time since the industry had a must-do American event and this is it. The reborn WMC!


Patrick Moxey

Ultra Music

Miami has always been a place I’ve considered home and WMC was essential for me and the label in many ways. From showcasing our new music to keeping up with all the new artists and releases. It was the official kickoff of the year and I’m happy to see it thriving again.


Louie Vega

DJ/Vega Records

I feel fortunate to have been part of the first-ever WMC. Over the 35 years, it has grown to give us an international forum where we exchange music and ideas. As an attendee and host of many of the award shows, I am proud each time I see new young talent emerge and then become world-renowned. We all have so many Winter Music Conference moments of hearing a seminal breakthrough record for the first time as well as a new DJ with star quality. Magical moments in my career.


Daniel Glass

Glassnote Records

Before there was Ultra Music Festival, there was The Winter Music Conference, the annual coming together of the dance music tribes. Miami in March is a fundamental place to be from a business perspective, and has always given me endless opportunities for discovering new partnerships and talent. WMC brings together the dance music industry and surrounding culture like no other event in America. I’ve been attending WMC for nearly 20 years, and I’m very much looking forward to experiencing its evolution in 2019.


Matt Colon

Director, North America - YM&U Music

If you want to know about our industry from the people that make it happen then go to WMC. It’s an accelerated masterclass in all things dance music.


Carl Cox

DJ/Intec Records