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Created in Midjourney using the following prompt: a young person listening to a vinyl record while talking on a flip phone
In 2022, vinyl out-sold CDs in the U.S. for the first time since 1987.
This isn’t supposed to happen.
Tech is inevitable, right? CDs marked a major improvement over their clumsy vinyl predecessors and boasted major efficiency advantages when they first came out.
Apparently, it’s deeper than data storage and interactive features.
2022’s 41M vinyl units sold (good enough for 70% of all physical music sales & a 17% YoY revenue increase) marked the 16th consecutive year of growth for the category.
Way back in 2014, after a 52% YoY growth in sales figures, the industry was quite literally caught flat-footed. With a mere ~15 vinyl pressing plants in the U.S., the surge caused a nationwide vinyl shortage.
We’re now sitting at pre-1990 vinyl sales volume, when CDs first broke into the mainstream and relegated vinyl to horse and buggy status. Though far off its peak, this chart is nothing short of astounding.
The driving force behind this revival has been chalked up to anyone from Baby Boomers to hipsters… both of whom contribute their fair share to the industry’s revenue.
And while it’s easy to find supporting evidence for both audience’s influence, with Boomer favorites like Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours, Michael Jackson’s Thriller, and The Beatles’ Abbey Road all placing in the top 10 selling vinyl of 2022 & hipsters’ rapper of choice Tyler, the Creator’s Igor placing 8th, that’s a small piece of the puzzle.
The top 3 were all decidedly mainstream artists with large Gen Z & Millennial audiences: Taylor Swift’s Midnights captured the top spot with just under 1M units sold… including 575K copies in its first week (a record previously held by Harry Styles, who set it the previous May).
Then comes Harry Styles’ Harry’s House and Olivia Rodrigo’s Sour.
Based on Luminate’s 2022 report, Gen Z is 27% more likely to buy vinyl vs. the average music listener. Luminate draws an interesting correlation between Gen Z’s consumption of vinyl — an inherently expensive mode of listening to music — to their willingness to spend more generally on their favorite artists.
“Gen Z’s consumption behaviors are only just a part of their story. They are also willing to spend money to support their favorite artists, especially when it comes to merch as they expressed a desire for their favorite artists to offer more merch as an opportunity to show support by +30% more than the average music listener in the U.S.”
This shifting of preferences toward ‘vintage’ and analog tech and old-school trends among youth isn’t limited to vinyl.
Flip phones are on the rise, expected to reach $29B in 2025, a CAGR of 70%. The irony of a Tik Tok — perhaps the epitome of modern consumer tech — going viral by extolling the benefits of flip phones is not lost on me, but considering the endless data we’ve gathered in recent years about the deadly effects of smartphones and their associated malevolent algorithmic-based apps, it’s actually quite refreshing.
@skzzolno Replying to @saraahhhyo literally everyone needs a flip phone in their life #BRINGBACKFLIPPHONES #college #goingout #collegelifehack #flip... See more
Parallel movements can be spotted in the uptick of film cameras, which have enjoyed a consistent upswing since 2015.
“Canon, Pentax, Nikon and Leica sales have all skyrocketed over the past two years, with sales increases between 42 and 79 percent. “The trend goes beyond personal passions,” Ms. Block said. Consumers are using eBay to shop for collectibles like sneakers, trading cards and luxury pieces, and film cameras are emerging as a new category for those investment-minded shoppers.”
VHS tapes have become a collector’s item, with a sealed copy of Back to the Future selling for $75K in June 2022.
Vintage gaming has always had a steady foothold, but have had fuel added to the flame recently, with old consoles like the Nintendo 64 selling for upwards of $10K for the rarest, most well-maintained examples.
These are not flukes. They’re measurements of the increasingly pessimistic sentiment shared by young people, stuck in endless commune with uninspired devices, touchscreens depriving them of simple tactile joy, and, if I may be so bold… the entire state of the world right now.
It’s nostalgia as a quest for simplicity. Regardless of clout associated with embracing some of these older aesthetics as forms of accessories, Taylor Swift fans and Tik Tok stars are going analog for a respite.
The kids are coming for the childhood they never knew.