In the time of streaming platforms across the board where you can listen to any music or artist you want; people still find joy in collecting records and CDs. Whether you actually listen to them or just enjoy how they look, people’s collections still grow all the time.
In the days of 2014 Tumblr, a lot of people wanted records and record players for the aesthetic of it. Some people still keep up with this aesthetic, some have molded it to fit other aesthetics. Some just really enjoy collections or the act of listening to a record.
Collections of records vary from person to person. Since it has gotten really popular among newer generations a lot of artists will release records with their albums that you could find in any Target or Barnes & Noble. For fans, it is another way to show their devotion to an artist since many treat it like another piece of merch. Many of these artists will even release more than one version of the record, like having a special edition one that is a different color or has an extra song on it.
Another side of record collecting is people who collect older records. These collections range from Queen to The Beatles to The Rolling Stones. People will frequent antique stores, older bookshops, and record stores to find the next addition to their collection. The appeal of these record stores is also why people go, getting to see hundreds of records all stored in one place in different, but usually well-kept conditions. People will come in just to browse and end up finding that one record they’ve been missing.
While these are two different examples of collectors, each person’s collection will be different. Either sticking to their favorite artists or going old school or doing a mix of both. Some want these records on display on shelves on their walls to help fit in with their personal decoration aesthetics while others keep them stored in good condition and others like to listen to their collection.
CD collectors have similarities to record collectors, like aesthetic purposes. The aesthetic of the 2000s has gained popularity in waves over the last couple of years, and this includes people playing CDs in their cars again instead of connecting to Bluetooth or using an AUX cord.
Now you can see more and more cars with their CD books hanging from the sun visor. Since this form of collecting has gotten a rise in popularity, artists will now also put out CD versions of their albums with the records. The appeal of these is more often than not a special CD booklet that contains something personal to the artists or about the album, or a poster of some sort.
In the same way as the record collectors, people will buy CDs of their favorite artists so they can have every piece of merch or every medium the newest album is on. Some fans actually chose to listen to their favorites on these CDs while others just want to have them on display as part of their fan collection.
Others simply just like CDs as their way to listen to music. There are fewer who just collect them, like records, many actually listen to these CDs. That being said many do like to put them up as decoration, but that is usually just because of the CD look, not the actual music or artist relating to the CD. A trend is to paint CDs and hang them up on the wall.
An honorable mention goes to cassette tapes, while collections of these are not as big as the other two, people still indulge in them. There are conversion AUX cords now for your car so that you can listen to them if you buy these without having to have an older car or cassette player. You even see some artists will put these out, but many fans just buy them for the purpose of saying they have that piece of merch.
Even though these collections have gotten really popular over the last couple of years, people still wonder what the point of it is. Especially since now, we have Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, etc. The point is that people have always collected things they enjoy. As well as people have always put their all into whatever aesthetic they like. If people enjoy it, then no other point needs to be made.