In recent years, there has been a return of beloved fashion and trends. Whether its bright colors, bell bottom jeans or the 80s iconic scrunchies, the trends of the past have come back in full force. One trend in particular has revived an old way of enjoying favorite music.

The sale of the record player has largely increased by 50% in 2021 and surpassed digital and CD sales. Part of this increase is due to vintage feel of the records and the high quality, warmer sounding music it provides.

Emily Lopez (9) enjoys the vintage feel that listening to records provides her.

“Vinyls are nice décor, and it sounds better to listen to them on records rather than streaming,” Lopez said.

Since its creation in 1887, the record player has been improved into the sleek, modern version that one might see today. Along with reducing the size of the record player, modern technology allows for listeners to hook up Bluetooth devices to their record player. This addition allows for the record player to have a dual use and has helped increase its popularity.

While the Bluetooth connection is a large point of attraction for some, many listeners collect records for the vintage vibe. With the hustle of today’s life, record collectors appreciate being able to take a second and just listen to their favorite music.

Cassidy Scherer (11) has been collecting records for 2 years and owns every album of Taylor Swift on vinyl.

“My favorite part of records is the authenticity of listening to older albums and older artists with them. I like having physical copies of the music and that’s a significant difference from
streaming on a device,” Scherer said.

Artists are now promoting vinyl records with the release of their new albums, as opposed to the CD’s of decades past. This increase in promotion has led to many fans buying the record to
experience the album in a new way and to support their artists. The purchase of the record also allows the listener to hold the album cover art in their hands, and some records come with exclusive songs or posters.

Along with promoting the record, artists can use presale of records and other merch to promote their album itself, as seen with Taylor Swift’s latest album, “Midnights.” Swift used the promotion of exclusive vinyl records to help promote her album, which contained hit songs that dominated the charts. Swift released four album covers, which
led to many fans buying all four to have a complete set.

The authenticity of the record entices some listeners, but others enjoy the hunt. Vinyls are available at many bookstores, record stores and online. The excitement of going into a store and fining the album you wished for is what appeals to many collectors.

Anna Grace Babbis (10) enjoys collecting records ever since she first bought Taylor Swift’s “Folklore.”
“My favorite part about records is collecting them because it is so fun to look through them at bookstores,” Babbis said