![]() RSD typically entices shoppers by supplying stores with vinyl manufactured specifically for the occasion, but for all the good this commercial holiday has done, it’s also produced some harmful side effects for record stores and the record-selling business.įor almost as long as RSD has existed, for instance, savvy record resellers have stalked shops to flip limited pressings online at outrageous prices. Many of them will participate in this year’s Record Store Day, which falls on Saturday, April 22. Selling vinyl is still a niche business, but some record shops have found a way to thrive. Of course, that huge number-84 percent of the industry’s total take-doesn’t translate into a living wage for the vast majority of artists who stream their music, but that’s a different story. Physical music sales totaled $1.7 billion last year, according to the RIAA, about 13 percent of streaming’s $13.3 billion in revenue during the same period. Last year, the Recording Industry Association of America reported that in 2022, sales of vinyl records (41 million) outpaced sales of CDs (33 million) for the first time since 1987. Vinyl sales had already been growing for a couple years at that point, and they’ve grown every year since. Streaming wasn’t yet the behemoth business it is today-Spotify also launched in 2008, and it wouldn’t reach the U.S. Record Store Day began 15 years ago as a way to mobilize consumer support for independent brick-and-mortar record stores, which were seen as niche enough to be at risk of extinction from big online retailers. Credit: Kathleen Hinkel for Chicago Reader Best of Chicago 2022: Sports & RecreationĪ customer browses vinyl at the farewell party for Dave’s Records on December 18, 2022.Click here to join the Reader Membership Community today! Close
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