Can you believe that it has been 40 years since the first release of the compact disc as a format for listening to music. And in that time music fans around the world have purchased billions of the shiner little discs.
When the CD first came out the so-called experts proclaimed that the vinyl LP was dead. But over the years fans have proved them wrong with vinyl sales making a steady climb and artists are releasing special anniversary collections of old albums. The industry saw $1 Billion in vinyl sales in 2021.
Those same “experts” have since claimed that with the ever present streaming music services that the CD is also dead.
But like the vinyl LP before it, the CD is making a return, albeit small in comparison to streaming. Last year music fans spent $580 million on CD’s.
Granted in this age of “I want it now” it is much more convenient to press the little icon for a favorite streaming service, but there is something to be said for placing the shiner little disc in the music player and bing surrounded by the music as you puruse the liner notes or follow along with the lyrics.
But the biggest surprise is just who is buying the CD’s…the iPod and mp3 generation! And they are taking to social media sites to show off their new found musical collections.
And surprisingly enough the cassette tape is also seeing a bit of an increase in sales.