Erykah Badu's 'Mama's Gun' Gets 180-Gram Vinyl Reissue
If you're reading this, your appreciation and faith in vinyl records--those glorious black wax discs that make music sound better, warmer and all the more human--has probably never wavered. But across the music industry as a whole, vinyl sales have only recently recovered from the seismic blow dealt by compact discs that began in 1990. And now, vinyl is once again setting records.
According to new figures released by the RIAA, vinyl sales in 2015 are on pace to eclipse 2014 and will be the highest in a quarter century [pdf]. Over 9 million LPs were sold in the first half of this year, which accounted for 30% of physical shipments across the entire industry. 14 million vinyl LPs were sold in 2014.
And, sorry old school heads, but millennials are leading the charge. MusicWatch notes that half of those buying vinyl are are under the age of 25. Records brought in $222 million for the music industry through the first half of 2015, but still only amount to 7 percent of the total market, which is dominated by digital and streaming services.
CNBC reported on the uptick in wax sales earlier this week, and in a statement to the news outlet, RIAA senior vice president of strategic data analysis Josh Friedlander called vinyl "a bright spot for the business." "In an increasingly digital age, vinyl records can provide a deeper, tactile connection to music that resonates with some of the biggest fans," be continued. Across the internet, numerous music sites have trumpeted the new numbers as a sign that vinyl is at its healthiest levels in over a generation's time, and we most certainly agree. Check out a chart below laying out the demographics of vinyl sales, and if you're itching to cop some of your own new wax, might we suggest the glorious colored vinyl reissue of The Roots' classic Do You Want More?!!!??!
