The way we listen to music has significantly changed over the last 30 years. But the way we access music has changed even more within the last 10.
It's amazing how we have come a long way to have and choose music that is open and available at almost no cost to the listener. The mediums we use to listen to our favorite songs and artists have expanded from vinyls, CDs, and old school radio to digital downloads, online radio, and free streaming services. It's not only listeners who take advantage of this free service, but aspiring bands and artists also utilize it by releasing their material on these streaming services in hopes of being discovered by the masses.
Although open access to music is every music lover's dream, it has affected our listening habits on many levels, especially on how music is now catered to us and their indirect financial consequences on listeners, record labels, and musicians. This difference has gotten to the point where our increasing reliance on free streaming services has led musicians to struggle staying financially afloat in the music industry.
Free streaming services have allowed listeners the capability to easily access music at no cost that purchasing music no longer seems to be a viable option. In 2014, Wall Street Journal reported a decrease in album sales over the last 5 years. In particular, CD sales have significantly decreased from 136.4 million in the first six months of 2009 to 62.9 million in the first half of 2014. Meanwhile, streaming services have gone up 54% in 2014 from 106 billion songs streamed in 2013.
However, one peculiar observation that can be noted from the decrease in album sales is that vinyls are making a comeback.
In 2014, Urban Outfitters placed second for selling vinyls following Amazon. It's worthy enough to mention Urban Outfitters because the fashion retailer is the epitome of today's youth culture when it comes to alternative expression, ranging from the generic hipster to chic geek. When you have a store like Urban Outfitters that focuses on selling trendy paraphernalia to a valuable youth consumer base, and holds an 8.1% market share in vinyl sales on a retail level, it shows that trends can influence the mediums listeners use to hear music.
What is trendy about vinyls that is helping it make a comeback with a younger group of listeners? Among the qualities that would draw listeners to purchase a vinyl is the look and feel of having a large physical copy of music in their hands, album artwork, and the assumption that music sounds better on vinyl.
As vinyls continue to trend in music, many musicians are using it as one of the ways to reach out to listeners while managing to financially survive in the music industry. But these days, the value of the music industry has significantly gone down to about $7 billion, which is half of what it was worth in 1999.
Musicians can utilize these free streaming services to gain exposure and popularity with listeners. But with this approach, it can be a game of Russian Roulette where listeners will either feel compelled enough to purchase music or continue streaming them. With decreasing music sales and the increasing popularity of streaming services, musicians are on their own when it comes to marketing themselves and their music.
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