Will Vinyl Ever Die? 💽

With the biggest Pop stars such as Billie Eilish and Dua Lipa releasing their latest albums on Vinyl, the classic format is staging a quiet comeback

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Hi Everyone,

Here on Incentify, we have been talking about Streaming Wars between major platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon, for a few weeks now. The fact that music today has become a utility, rather than a luxury, with millions of songs available for users at the tip of their fingers, has ensured that the dynamics of the industry have been completely disrupted.

Amidst this rush to go digital, wherein the industry has pivoted from decades of suffering from piracy of CDs, there is one medium of music that is making an unexpected comeback- the good old Vinyl.

Vinyl records carry a unique charm with them

Regarded as the Jurrasic form of music, and with streaming adding millions of users every month, you’d think that the writing was on the wall for physical Vinyl records.

However, the fact is Vinyl never went out of fashion, even in 2021. Its origins go way back to the 1890s, as it was the primary medium of consuming music, until later in the 80s when cassette tapes and CDs took over.

With CDs dominating the 90s and 2000s, until after streaming took over this past decade, Vinyl record sales have been quietly creeping up ever since 2006. The numbers speak for themselves:

According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), Vinyl sales in America increased by 28.7% with $626 million in revenue generated as compared to its 2019 sales. And not only is the format coming back in the US it also has increased sales in the UK. British Phonographic Industry (BPI) reported that 4.8 million copies were sold in the UK for the year 2020.

Vinyl collectors have been driving up the recent bounce back in sales

But why is there a rise in Vinyl records and what makes them so expensive? 🤔

The Love for Vinyl 💽

People who collect Vinyl love the classic format. Irrespective of the generation, those with a deep appreciation for fine arts are reliving the days when they first got their vinyl records. Rediscovering the format has been a big part of what makes people want to buy these records.

And this is not just me saying it for the sake of saying it, numbers by RIAA and BPI speak for themselves. People buy these records to collect them, listen to them, and quite possibly have the feel-good factor of associating their favorite records with something tangible, rather than another download on your smartphone.

The hashtag “#vinyl” has over 27.6 million posts on Instagram and the subreddit r/Vinyls has over 623k members. Users love showing off their vinyl records on social media.

Collectors are loving the hype 📈

People also collect vinyl records since most of them are very expensive. The most expensive vinyl ever sold was from the hip-hop group “Wu-Tang Clan”. Their LP “Once upon a Time in Shaolin” was sold for $2 million. What makes it so valuable is the fact that only one copy was ever created.

Once upon a Time in Shaolin by Wu-Tang Clang

Naturally, these rare Vinyl records have become every Vinyl collector’s dream. There are high-stakes bidding wars and sales on the internet for such records.

The list of top 5 most expensive vinyl sales ever are:-

1. Wu-Tang Clang- Once Upon a Time in Shaolin for $2,000,000

2. The Beatles- The Beatles (White Album) for $790,000.

3. Elvis Presley- My Happiness for $300,000

4. The Beatles- Sgt.Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club for $290,000

5. John Lennon & Yoko Ono: Double Fantasy sold for $150,000.

Artists are releasing Vinyl Albums 🎵

With all the hype for vinyl records, who wouldn’t take advantage of this great opportunity, right?

Vinyl records’ comeback has pushed record labels to start releasing their popular artists’ singles and albums in this expensive format. Last year, we saw how popular artists like Harry Styles, Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, and Dua Lipa have released their latest albums on vinyl.

“Happier than Ever” LP by Billie Eilish

What makes them expensive is the fact that there are only 100 or sometimes only 25-50 vinyl records made for an album or a single. This is what drives their prices to the skies and this has majorly contributed to reviving the old music format.

But how does Vinyl actually work?

A typical record player has a type of needle called a stylus that is placed gently on the vinyl record resting at the beginning of one of the groves. When the stylus moves, it pushes the magnet up and down past the coil, generating electrical signals that are fed to the amplifier to create sound through your speakers

Want to get into detail and know how they actually work? Check out this video from BBC Earth Lab where they dive deep into Vinyl 👇🏻

Our take on it?

Vinyl records will only go up in prices as obtaining rare records becomes a hobby for people. It will grow with the rise of NFTs in Music as people pay millions to collect rare songs, samples, items for millions of dollars.

An easy way of looking at the similarity between Vinyl and NFTs is looking at them as collectibles. And just like the creative freedom we see on Vinyl records, NFT’s also drive a similar unique selling point as NFT music comes with added utility.

DJ 3LAU recently announced that he will feature the top bidder of his NFT auction in his new track. With incentives like this, we can see how Vinyls and NFTs will add a novelty factor to the music industry by appealing to collectors and genuine music enthusiasts.

Also, when it comes to the battle between digital and physical music, legendary guitarist Neil Young’s quote on it perfectly sums it up 👇🏻

There is something truly genuine about the touch and feel of a classic vinyl record, and the younger generation is just starting to warm up to the same. This could be an interesting trend to follow 📈

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