the numerous rival music streaming platforms — represent the most prevalent way individuals enjoy music. Indeed, according to a Forbes article from the previous year, close to 85% of the music industry’s earnings are derived from streaming services. This is unsurprising, as a subscription to one of these platforms effectively provides you with access to virtually any track you might wish to hear in an instant. However, the challenge for certain users lies intrinsically in the idea of streaming — specifically, that you do not truly possess the music you are experiencing. This absence of a tangible interaction, or a feeling of permanence, is prompting some audiences to revert to a more technologically basic type of media: the vinyl record. Vinyl enthusiasts highlight the distinctions in sound related to the format itself as a draw to the medium, too.
The emphasis on the term “some audiences” is important here, as while vinyl listenership has indeed increased over the past decade or so, it has not overtaken streaming in popularity. Refer to this thorough analysis from Statista. It pointed out that despite vinyl “constituting 8% of U.S. music revenue,” it remains far from the significant heights it reached in the late ’70s. The reality remains that the trend of listening to vinyl is experiencing growth — and that 8% revenue statistic is certainly noteworthy. So what drives individuals back to those sizable, grooved discs?
