Lyor Cohen, YouTube‘s Global Head of Music, says the platform’s mission for the year ahead is to “help artists and songwriters harness the power of visual storytelling to build their global audiences and lifelong careers.”
The exec made the comments in his first letter to music industry partners of 2026, outlining the platform’s strategic priorities for the year ahead.
The letter, published on the YouTube blog on Monday (March 16), touches on AI, artist development, and the platform’s monetization track record.
Cohen addressed the challenge of music discovery, acknowledging that “the democratization of music hasn’t been a straight line.”
“Fans are still experiencing a tidal wave of choice, but our goal is to be the lighthouse that helps them cut through the clutter,” he wrote.
Cohen argued that helping fans discover “the interconnected visual world of an artist” is essential to building sustainable careers, drawing a parallel between the digital age and older modes of music discovery.
He added: “Digging through the crates to find a life-changing track or seeing your favorite band play live for the first time – those are seminal experiences.
“While the journey to get there has changed, the feeling when it hits remains the same. Together we need to focus on growing dedicated fanbases that put every album on repeat and buy tickets for every tour.”
Cohen positioned YouTube as a “comprehensive visual storytelling ecosystem,” citing Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime performance — which he said has earned over 120 million views on YouTube — and ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ Grammy opening performance of APT., which has accumulated over 2.3 billion views on the platform.
He highlighted Baby Keem’s recent album rollout as a “blueprint for engagement,” noting that the campaign began with documentary content, moved into an exclusive fan-first listening event, and culminated in official music videos.
“[Baby Keem] moved beyond the album drop and built a world that ignited his global audience,” Cohen wrote.
“It ensures that on YouTube, a song isn’t just one of the thousands that gets released each day – it’s the spark that connects artists and fans on a much deeper level.”
Cohen also devoted a significant portion of the letter to YouTube’s approach to generative AI, referencing a recent statement from YouTube CEO Neal Mohan that “AI will remain a tool for expression, not a replacement.”
He pointed to new tools being developed to “unlock a new wave of storytelling capabilities for artists, songwriters, and creators,” citing a reimagined music video from Lewis Capaldi created using Google‘s Flow tool via Wonder Studios.
Cohen also said YouTube is “doubling down” on systems like Content ID to build new guardrails around likeness detection, while “combating the spread of low-quality AI content” on the platform.
Cohen reiterated YouTube’s recently disclosed payout milestone, noting that the platform paid out over $8 billion to the music industry between July 2024 and June 2025 — a figure first revealed by Cohen at Billboard Latin Music Week in Miami in October.
“Our commitment to monetization is absolute,” Cohen wrote. “But it doesn’t stop there.”
Speaking with MBW in March of last year, Cohen said YouTube is “not going to stop” until it becomes the number one revenue source for the music industry globally — a title currently held by Spotify, which paid out over $11 billion to the music industry in 2025.
Cohen also referenced Universal Music Group Chairman and CEO Sir Lucian Grainge in the letter, describing him as “a critical ally in the launch of YouTube Music for over a decade.”
Cohen said Grainge congratulated YouTube on its $8 billion payout milestone, quoting the UMG chief as saying: “This is just YouTube’s first $8 billion; there’s still a world of opportunities to unlock the next 8!” Grainge added: “I’m energized by the unprecedented growth that AI can unlock for artists and songwriters – so we must continue our work together on responsible innovation that respects and amplifies human creativity.”
You can read Lyor Cohen’s letter in full below:
The right side of history
By Lyor Cohen, Global Head of Music, YouTube
Mar 16, 2026
Editor’s Note: Lyor Cohen, Global Head of Music sent the following newsletter to music partners.
Dear Partners,
Damn … did you see what I saw between the Grammys, the Super Bowl, and The BRITs? Music isn’t just at the center of culture, it IS culture.
Watching ROSEì and Bruno Mars open The Grammys with APT. – one of last year’s top songs on YouTube with over 2.3 billion views – blew my mind! And what about Olivia Dean winning Best New Artist? Seven years ago she walked into our office with nothing but an acoustic guitar and a dream. Today, she is a Grammy- and BRITs-winning global superstar. Then came the Super Bowl. I’m not even sure who won the game because Bad Bunny stole the show. The performance has over 120 million views on YouTube, which doesn’t surprise me because he’s got 19 music videos with over a billion views, the most of any artist in history. To top it off, ROSALÍA brought Berghain to life at The BRIT Awards and changed the game with an absolutely extraordinary performance that earned over 4 million views in 2 days on YouTube.
These moments reassure us that artists are harnessing the power of visual storytelling. As the undisputed home of the music video, YouTube has evolved into a comprehensive visual storytelling ecosystem where artists build deep, lasting connections with their global community.
With billions of logged-in viewers watching music videos on our platform each month, it’s clear that the music video isn’t just surviving, it’s thriving as a primary driver of fan loyalty. In addition to official content, we are uplifting content from the ‘extended’ artist world – think cultural moments like Coachella and the Olympics, or the raw intimacy of an NPR Tiny Desk concert – that extends fandom even further. A recent masterclass was Baby Keem’s Ca$ino album rollout, which started with documentary content, rolled into an exclusive fan-first listening event, and culminated in the Birds & the Bees official video. Baby Keem moved beyond the album drop and built a world that ignited his global audience. This is the blueprint for engagement. It ensures that on YouTube, a song isn’t just one of the thousands that gets released each day – it’s the spark that connects artists and fans on a much deeper level.
At the same time, our twin engine of advertising and subscription revenue has continued to deliver, most recently paying out over $8 billion to the music industry between July 2024 and June 2025. Our commitment to monetization is absolute. But it doesn’t stop there.
I recognize that the democratization of music hasn’t been a straight line. Fans are still experiencing a tidal wave of choice, but our goal is to be the lighthouse that helps them cut through the clutter. We know that in order to foster sustainable artist careers, helping fans discover the interconnected visual world of an artist is more important than ever. Digging through the crates to find a life-changing track or seeing your favorite band play live for the first time – those are seminal experiences. While the journey to get there has changed, the feeling when it hits remains the same. Together we need to focus on growing dedicated fanbases that put every album on repeat and buy tickets for every tour.
We are also in the thick of a transformation period with the integration of generative AI across our businesses. I want to reinforce a key point our CEO, Neal Mohan, recently shared in his annual letter to the YouTube community: “AI will remain a tool for expression, not a replacement.” That means building tools that unlock a new wave of storytelling capabilities for artists, songwriters, and creators. Like Lewis Capaldi’s extraordinary reimagined Something in the Heavens video that was created by Wonder Studios, made with Flow. We’re also doubling down on the kinds of systems you’ve trusted for years – like Content ID – to build new guardrails for likeness detection, while also combating the spread of low-quality AI content on our platform.
I keep reminding myself that in many ways we’ve been here before, and for the most part, we emerged stronger because we worked together to shape the possibilities and tackle the problems. This moment is no different. We can’t run from it – we’ve just got to build it responsibly, creatively, and together.
Sir Lucian Grainge, who has been a key partner of ours and a critical ally in the launch of YouTube Music for over a decade, recently congratulated us on our payout milestone, sharing, “This is just YouTube’s first $8 billion; there’s still a world of opportunities to unlock the next 8!” He added, “I’m energized by the unprecedented growth that AI can unlock for artists and songwriters – so we must continue our work together on responsible innovation that respects and amplifies human creativity.”
Our mission for 2026 is clear: Help artists and songwriters harness the power of visual storytelling to build their global audiences and lifelong careers. At the same time, help fans cut through the noise and take them on an immersive journey to find the music that soundtracks their life, creating connections that run deep along the way.
Let’s go!
With respect, Lyor
Music Business Worldwide