With the introduction of Spotify, an app designed for music, in the mid-2000s, traditional forms of media such as cassettes, CDs and vinyl began to rapidly decline. All music is now at your fingertips for a small monthly fee; physical media looked to be gone for good.
However, the revival and resurgence of vinyl has been staggering. People are treating music like an art form, a collection. As of recent times, money-hungry music companies are looking to capitalise on the popularity and exploit music lovers.
I recently had an eye-opening conversation with my Dad, about growing up in the 90s, his most loved music years. ‘How did you even know if you’d like a certain band or album before you bought it?’, he explained he would tune in early Friday morning to hear the lead single and run to his local music store, and there would be a queue around the corner to buy it!
It’s embarrassing to admit I found this a real culture shock. In less than 30 years, the way we consume music has vastly changed. For a small fee and the click of a button, I have access to every single album and song I could ever want.
Despite this, many other young people, myself included, crave having ownership of music. The physical feeling of unwrapping a new vinyl, having it in your hands, and enjoying music, which can be enjoyed as an art form rather than consumed online. It’s a decorative piece of art.
According to the BBC, physical media sales are at their highest since the introduction of Spotify, 20 years ago.
Buying Vinyl, CDs and cassettes is the best way to support an artist; one album sale is equal to ten track sales, which equals 1,500 streams. It’s no surprise that artists try to push sales of physical media as much as possible. Not only do they have a higher chance of chart success, but they also earn more money.
Artists’ greedy record labels publish as many different vinyl variants as possible. Not long ago, an album had one cover, possibly a special edition deluxe extended version with an alternative cover or vinyl colour.
Nowadays, every major artist this year has released an alternative cover and a deluxe version: Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Dean, Fontaines D.C. and Tate McRae.
The way fans consume music is in higher amounts than ever before, suggesting the rapid consumerism in the 2020s is hitting the music industry, too.
Taylor Swift is the worst of the bunch; her album ‘The Life of a Showgirl’ currently has more than 34 different versions since its release on October 3rd this year. In a desperate attempt to create chart success for an album that got mixed reviews. Her legion of loyal Swifties still buy it – abs but it 34 times over. It’s unlikely the music label would approve of so many variants if the sales weren’t there.
In the album’s launch week, Miss Swift amassed 432,000 album sales in the UK on release and 3.2million in the States. Making it the fastest-selling album in modern history.
No shock that she is a billionaire, with over 30 variants of each of her two most recent albums, she has cracked the chart code. Linked heavily to overconsumption, with her a loyal fan base and is now breaking records like never before.
Guilty, I have about 5 Taylor Swift vinyls; however, since her release of The Tortured Poets Department in April 2024, her variant output is absurd and frankly disgusting. It feels very far removed from the young 15-year-old from Pennsylvania, with a passion and a heart for music, not making money. Not that she needs anymore.
She has started a trend in the music industry that is now fixated on crazy album rollouts. Sabrina Carpenter has followed in the footsteps of her ‘industry’ mother; her 2024 album ‘Short N Sweet’ was one of the biggest albums of the year and propelled her into a household name. Less than a year later, she released a follow-up album, ‘Man’s Bestfriend.’ Over 10 versions were released for this.
In the End, the Renaissance of physical media should have been something celebrated, which symbolises that music still holds sentimental value in a disposable world. However, corporate greed has twisted this into a money-making opportunity. Supporting an artist shouldn’t mean buying every variant possible; it should be consuming and appreciating the art for what it is. Overconsumerism goes hand-in-hand with physical music greed.
