Rock music’s measured radio audience in Edison Research’s Infinite Dial 2014 data is predominantly male, averages 36 years old, and combines traditional radio with online and mobile behavior. Classic Rock/Classic Hits listeners are older in the same study, with an average age of 46.
Table of contents
- Audience profile
- Age and gender
- Race and connectivity
- Radio and discovery
- Devices and social behavior
- Classic Rock/Classic Hits comparison
Audience profile
“Rock P1s” are the respondents Edison Research identified as primary listeners for rock. These figures describe that audience as measured in 2014. They are not a current estimate of every rock listener and are not a forecast.
Men account for 63% of Rock P1s and women account for 37%. The average age is 36. Ninety-one percent live in homes with internet access. Eighteen percent currently subscribe to SiriusXM satellite radio, while 53% listened to online radio in the last week.
The figures also show an audience interested in staying connected to music. Sixty-nine percent say it is very or somewhat important to keep up-to-date with music. Seventy-nine percent use AM/FM radio to find out about music. Radio therefore appears both as a listening medium and as a reported discovery source.
Age and gender
The age distribution spans several life stages. Sixteen percent of Rock P1s are ages 12–17, 33% are ages 18–34, 36% are ages 35–54, and 15% are ages 55 or older.
| Rock P1 age group | Share |
|---|---|
| Ages 12–17 | 16% |
| Ages 18–34 | 33% |
| Ages 35–54 | 36% |
| Ages 55+ | 15% |
| Average age | 36 |
The largest listed group is ages 35–54, followed by ages 18–34. These are shares of Rock P1s, not the percentage of people in each age group who prefer rock. The average age summarizes the distribution but does not replace it: the measured audience includes teenagers, younger adults, midlife listeners, and people 55 and older.
The gender split is male-majority but not exclusively male. At 63% men and 37% women, the figures show a substantial female share alongside the larger male share. They describe the measured group and do not establish why individual listeners chose rock.
Race and connectivity
Edison Research reported Rock P1 race-identification shares of 70% White, 7% African-American, 17% Hispanic, and 2% Other race. Four percent refused race identification. The refusal category remains separate because it is part of the reported measurement.
Ninety-one percent of Rock P1s live in homes with internet access. This is a household-access measure, not a claim that every listener uses the internet for music, and it does not measure connection speed or frequency.
The research was conducted in 2014, when online radio, social networks, smartphones, tablets, and music apps were already represented in the listening environment. The reported figures provide a period-specific snapshot, not a later trend line.
Radio and discovery
Traditional and digital audio appear together in the Rock P1 results. Fifty-three percent listened to online radio in the last week, and 18% currently subscribed to SiriusXM satellite radio.
Pandora was known by 85% of Rock P1s. Thirty-nine percent listened to Pandora in the last month and 32% listened in the last week. iHeartRadio was known by 60%, and 12% listened to it in the last month. Spotify awareness was 53%, while iTunes Radio awareness was 57%.
| Service or behavior | Rock P1 result | Measurement |
|---|---|---|
| Online radio listening | 53% | Last week |
| SiriusXM subscription | 18% | Currently |
| Pandora awareness | 85% | Awareness |
| Pandora listening | 39% | Last month |
| Pandora listening | 32% | Last week |
| iHeartRadio awareness | 60% | Awareness |
| iHeartRadio listening | 12% | Last month |
| Spotify awareness | 53% | Awareness |
| iTunes Radio awareness | 57% | Awareness |
The Pandora results show why measurement periods should stay attached to each statistic. Awareness, last-month listening, and last-week listening are different indicators. They should not be treated as one reach figure or added together.
YouTube was also part of the measured environment: 48% of Rock P1s used YouTube to watch music videos or listen to music in the last week. In discovery, 79% used AM/FM radio to find out about music, and 69% said keeping up-to-date with music was very or somewhat important.
Devices and social behavior
Seventy-two percent of Rock P1s owned a smartphone, and 47% owned a tablet. Fifty-eight percent always had their cell phone within arm’s length. These figures describe ownership and proximity, not the amount of music consumed on each device.
Twenty-eight percent had ever downloaded the Shazam app. “Ever downloaded” is an experience measure and should not be interpreted as current use. Four percent most often listened to AM/FM radio using earbuds, earphones, or a headset. Twenty-six percent said they would listen a lot more if their cell phones had an FM radio tuner. That last figure is a stated hypothetical response, not an observed increase.
Car listening was widespread in the reported group. Ninety-four percent of Rock P1 drivers or passengers currently ever used AM/FM radio in the primary car. Twenty percent currently ever used SiriusXM satellite radio in that car. These are car-use measures among drivers or passengers, not claims about every listening location.
Seventy-eight percent had a profile on any social network. Sixty-seven percent had a Facebook profile, and Rock P1s with Facebook profiles averaged 334 Facebook friends. That average applies only to the subgroup with profiles. Twenty-four percent had a LinkedIn profile, 25% currently used Twitter, and 37% used social networking sites several times per day.
Among employed Rock P1s, 56% listened to radio while working. Among employed Rock P1s who listened while working, 8% listened over a computer and 21% listened on a mobile device. The subgroup condition applies to those computer and mobile percentages.
Seventy-seven percent thought commercials were a fair price to pay for free AM/FM programming. This is an opinion about the trade-off for free programming, not a measure of ad recall or purchase behavior.
Classic Rock/Classic Hits comparison
Classic Rock/Classic Hits P1s had a different demographic shape. The group was 57% men and 43% women, with an average age of 46. Its age distribution was 8% ages 12–17, 28% ages 18–34, 32% ages 35–54, and 30% ages 55+.
| Measure | Rock P1s | Classic Rock/Classic Hits P1s |
|---|---|---|
| Men | 63% | 57% |
| Women | 37% | 43% |
| Ages 12–17 | 16% | 8% |
| Ages 18–34 | 33% | 28% |
| Ages 35–54 | 36% | 32% |
| Ages 55+ | 15% | 30% |
| Average age | 36 | 46 |
| White | 70% | 77% |
| African-American | 7% | 5% |
| Hispanic | 17% | 8% |
| Other race | 2% | 4% |
| Refused race identification | 4% | 6% |
The Classic Rock/Classic Hits group has a larger 55+ share, at 30% versus 15% among Rock P1s, and a smaller 12–17 share, at 8% versus 16%. Its average age is 46 compared with 36 for Rock P1s. The gender difference is narrower: men represent 57% of Classic Rock/Classic Hits P1s compared with 63% of Rock P1s.
Race-identification shares also differ. Classic Rock/Classic Hits P1s are 77% White, 5% African-American, 8% Hispanic, and 4% Other race, with 6% refusing race identification. The corresponding Rock P1 figures are 70%, 7%, 17%, and 2%, with 4% refusing. These figures describe the measured groups and do not explain the causes of the differences.
Household and subscription measures provide further context. Eighty-one percent of Classic Rock/Classic Hits P1s lived in homes with internet access, compared with 91% of Rock P1s. Seventeen percent currently subscribed to SiriusXM satellite radio, compared with 18% of Rock P1s. Thirty-one percent listened to online radio in the last week, compared with 53% of Rock P1s.
This comparison is a period-specific audience snapshot. It distinguishes the broader Rock P1 profile from the older Classic Rock/Classic Hits profile while preserving the audience definitions and response categories reported by Edison Research in the Infinite Dial 2014 study.
Readers comparing the groups should keep the labels intact: Rock P1s and Classic Rock/Classic Hits P1s are separate reported audiences, and each percentage belongs to its named population, time frame, or subgroup.