For thousands of years, the only way mankind was able to experience music was in-person. So to say that technology has had a major impact on the way that we collectively experience music is an understatement. In the last 100 years, thanks to record players and radio, music has become something that non-music players can experience whenever they want. There is no longer a need to visit a concert hall or opera house to have music in our lives. That is no small feat.
Music continues to be molded and shaped by the technology around us, and the music industry in turn finds itself continuously playing catch-up. Radio beget vinyl records which beget 8-track players and cassette tapes, which in turn gave way to CDs and eventually MP3s. With each successive generation, the industry has had to make something of an about-face to account for these new ways of listening to music. That hasn’t changed. So what’s the landscape look like today? And what does the future hold? Here’s a brief rundown.
Cassette Players: Say “Hello” to the Digital Music Player
It could be argued that the music industry that we know today began with the introduction of MP3 players in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Suddenly, individuals could download individual songs or whole albums online; and in the case of Napster, they could do it for free. This new “sharing” economy was built upon shaky legal grounds, but enough people found the premise to be a legitimate one that it upended an industry that had been coasting on its laurels.
Suddenly, record sales were no longer guaranteed. CD readers and burners, commonplace on desktop computers, allowed individuals to copy a CD, digitize the files, and upload to the internet for all the world to see (ahem, listen to). And though the industry fought back, eventually all but paralyzing Napster, the damage had already been done. Digital music was the future, and personal music players became the new status quo. Why settle for a Sony Discman when you could store hundreds, and then thousands, of songs on a single device? When Apple launched the original iPod in 2001, it marked the end of an era and the beginning of a new one.
Streaming Services Make Purchases a Thing of the Past
One could be forgiven for thinking that iTunes would remain the pinnacle medium for music. After all, it burst onto the scene with much fanfare, and its revenue shot through the roof in no time. Thanks to iPods becoming ubiquitous staples in households across the country and the world, and the user-friendly interface that made purchasing a single song or an entire album a cinch (your grandmother never used Napster, but she could certainly use iTunes with just a little bit of practice), digital music (with the help of streaming – more on that below) eventually did what many long suspected it would: overtake traditional CD sales. After all, why wouldn’t it? Compare a CD to MP3s and there really is no comparison. And yet… there was a new kid on the block: streaming. And it proved that even iTunes could be hurt.
Streaming is a concept that asks the question, “Do you really even need to buy music?” Why not, instead, pay a marginal fee and have access to vast catalogs of music from your favorite artists? What if you could have your very own curated radio stations, all for a small monthly payment? Take these concepts to their conclusions and you arrive at streaming as we know it today. For most of us, we access streaming completely for free (something the industry has been significantly impacted by). We can access only the artists and music that we like, at no cost. The streaming service makes its revenue through ad sales, and we, the consumers, have almost carte blanche when it comes to selection and diversity. Not a bad deal, right? Better yet, the industry has caught on to our new habits. With public Wi-Fi nearly universal, and carriers like T-Mobile offering programs like “Binge On” for their smartphones, which allow you to stream unlimited music or videos, we no longer even have to worry about cutting into our data when we stream music. It is truly a golden era, if not for the artist, then certainly the listener.
But What about Music On-demand?
YouTube, Apple Music, Tidal, and certainly torrents, have made it possible to hear any song, anytime, anywhere, on virtually any device or smartphone, regardless of whether or not you happen to own the track itself. This new on-demand status quo has made it difficult for all but the largest bands and artists to make any sort of money with album sales. Instead, many bands now find that they must tour, relentlessly in some cases, to make a living.
The upside of this is that even smaller bands can now make a name for themselves, as social media has made it possible for people to sing the praises of the artists they like. An indie rock band from Akron or Tacoma no longer needs to figure out how to get its album in record stores in Brooklyn and Los Angeles in order to land gigs in those cities. Facebook and Twitter, in this respect, have usurped the traditional record store. Thus, even though some artists may find that it’s harder than ever to sell albums, in some ways, it’s easier than ever to have your music heard.
And Yet, It All Comes Back to Vinyl
You may have heard, but vinyl is making something of a resurgence. In fact, that’s a bit of an understatement. Vinyl sales have continued to rise, year after year, for a decade or more. Many artists are now releasing new albums on vinyl, which in turn, is helping introduce the medium to a whole new generation of music listeners. What can explain this new love for the LP and EP? Well, nostalgia certainly must play a part. Look at the films in your local cineplex, and it seems that roughly one out of three are remakes, reboots, sequels, or prequels to films that were originally released when today’s millennials were growing up and coming of age. But that only partially explains it. After all, most millennials didn’t grow up with vinyl, so how nostalgic can they be? Regardless, vinyl refuses to give in. Have you bought your record player yet?
-Samantha Rivers
