The industry has welcomed the incredible turnaround for physical music in the latest market results.
Music Week analyses the performance of physical formats in the new edition of the magazine.
According to figures for the first six months from the BPI and Official Charts Company, physical album sales increased by 3.2% year-on-year to 8,044,760. It means that physical is on course for its first annual growth in two decades.
At the same point in 2023, physical albums growth was still negative (-0.3%), while the 12-month result last year showed a 1.1% drop. A return to annual growth is now a likely outcome.
Here, Kim Bayley, CEO of digital entertainment & retail association ERA, digs into the latest physical music trends...
Physical unit sales are on track for their first year-on-year increase in two decades – how surprised and optimistic are you about the performance so far this year?
“The exciting thing is this is not just a long-term achievement – matching sales levels not seen for two decades - but a very strong year-on-year performance. Everyone involved deserves congratulations for this achievement which goes right across the board – from blockbusters like Taylor Swift to a very successful Record Store Day.”
Vinyl is driving the physical sales increase – how broad is the audience now for this format? To what extent is it a merch item as much as a music release?
“It certainly seems like the only way is up for vinyl right now, and a key reason for that is the broadening of an audience which is increasingly younger and more female, which can only bode well for the future. Whether vinyl is sold as merch or to play is in a sense irrelevant from a revenue perspective, but from a marketing point of view the merch angle – the purchase as an expression of fanhood – will become increasingly important.”
CD’s decline could have bottomed out, how is the format performing and what’s needed to bring about a lasting revival?
“You could argue that CD is where vinyl was two decades ago. Too many people have written it off. But if we can lean into its strengths as the benchmark highest quality digital format, there’s no knowing where we could take it.”
How important are initiatives such as Record Store Day, National Album Day and HMV Vinyl Week in terms of the growth of physical?
“Promotions like Record Store Day and the rest have been instrumental in physical’s revival since they provide an urgency and call-to-action which goes over-and-above the structural revival of physical formats.”
Retailers have real concerns that continuous price increases are testing the patience of music fans
Kim Bayley
Can the vinyl growth continue, how strong do you expect it to be this year with the release schedule we have, including new albums from Coldplay, Eminem on vinyl, London Grammar, Oasis’ 30th anniversary of Definitely Maybe, and more?
“People have been calling the top of the vinyl revival for two decades so we can be optimistic, but it would be wrong to be complacent. Luckily the strength of the current release schedule suggests the coming months will continue to perform well.”
We’ve seen previous challenges in terms of capacity and price inflation, are there any new potential problems for vinyl’s trajectory? Are there questions about sustainability that could impact sales of variants; should more be done to provide fans with eco-friendly releases?
“Issues around capacity now seem to be under control, and just as the capacity crunch led to big investments in new plant, so the demand for more eco-friendly vinyl will drive innovation in this area. Coldplay’s embrace of more eco-friendly vinyl is a sign that this has mainstream appeal. The more challenging issue is price. Retailers are at the sharp end and they have real concerns that continuous price increases are testing the patience of music fans.”
How much credit should Taylor Swift take for the physical music market performance in 2024?
“2024 has been the year of Taylor Swift and certainly she has been a great sales driver for vinyl. On the other hand, Taylor would not have been able to achieve the success she has in vinyl without that earlier spadework from the entire industry in putting vinyl back on the agenda.”
And away from the frontline releases, how important is catalogue to the continuing success of vinyl as classic titles are made available in new editions?
“It’s a truism that catalogue is the backbone of the record business and that’s certainly the case for physical. What is different this time around is that while the initial vinyl revival was driven by older fans re-buying the favourite music of their past, these days it’s younger fans discovering classic artists for the first time – be it Amy Winehouse or Joy Division – who are increasingly coming to the fore. We are used to the idea that streaming is the discovery channel, but increasingly for younger people, vinyl is a discovery format too.”
Subscribers can read our full report on the physical market here.
PHOTO: Banquet
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