Joseph Hwang
* This article is based on the "2023 Music Industry White Paper" published by the Korea Creative Content Agency, part of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Korea.
In the music industry, music products are broadly divided into two types. One is recorded music and the other is live music. The former means playable at any time and place through recorded music like CDs and streaming services. The latter means listenable at specific places like concerts. The recorded music products are to sell the containers of recorded music or recorded data to the customers, and the live music products are to sell the specific listenable space for a piece of live music playing time. These seem to be the same music product to the public, but the point of sale of the music and its attribution as a selling product is completely different.
Consumption of music can complete only an auditory sense. But it does not have only itself. People consume music by listening to and watching the performances of music artists simultaneously. The consumption method of music is typically listening, but the fans' way of satisfying music or admiring their idols is never limited to listening. Their consumption methods are just a little complex, such as owning the artists' merchandise, memorabilia, souvenirs, taking photos, and so on. The enthusiasts of music stars, don't satisfy their minds by only enjoying music, they always desire more than that.
Here is the important fact that listening to music is still the primary way to consume music products, but music products are consumed and enjoyed the various senses and methods such as watching, possessing, and other combined feelings the existence of idols not only listening to music at present.
1. Increasing purchase of recorded K-pop music
According to IFPI's "Global Music Report 2023", the global market size of recorded music in 2022 was USD 26.2 billion (YoY +9%), physical music disk market among the global market size was USD 4.6 billion. In South Korea, the streaming and physical disk market together increase the market size as consumption methods of music. The consumption of vinyl records increased by the Gen MZ in the K-pop market including music streaming, not CDs. What a strange phenomenon!
2. Why vinyl?
The phenomenon of MZ preferring vinyl records of K-pop is not only a situation in South Korea but also in the Western market. Then why does MZ buy the vinyl records and not the CDs? I can guess some reasons as follows:
- Scarcity value
These days, people are consuming music with online streaming services. The MZ, who wants to get more unique and special things than others, gives higher value for the old-fashioned things like the vinyl records. For the generation, the vinyl records are not only rare but also different from the same generation's preference. This means that vinyl records can make different points even for the old-fashioned ones than their friends.
- The role of fandom
Music used to be something you listened to, but now it's something you see and experience. The fandom has made it that way. K-pop has group dances that can be imitated, and this creates a sense of belonging and pride in the group. Nowadays, fandom doesn't just bring fans together. They record and share fandom activities and make participation programs voluntary. This is a phenomenon created by the ability to communicate on the Internet. This phenomenon of gathering, uniting, and participating has made music more than just a passive listening experience.
What they share with their fandom should be something special to them. Vinyl records, though an old relic, are a symbol of that distinction and specialness that can be shared within a community. Of course, listening to music which is a basic function is also an important thing that works.
- Visual Stimulation
As previously mentioned, the present music is no longer consumed only by listening but is enjoyed with visualization and more mixed complex factors because the MZ generation has experienced music with music videos and visual media.
In my opinion, the same is true for the context of mechanical playback media. We can feel that the LP player is a more visual and mechanical tool than the CD player. LP players are good for visual music consumption. In the process of reading the recorded music data, a CD player uses laser light to reflect a recorded track on the disk, but this method of reading the track data is almost hidden for eye protection. However, an LP player has a stylus. That's enough. A rotating disk is detected by a stylus, and time flows more and more, physically and visually showing how the sound is processed with our eyes. This is more intuitive than CD players. We can see the sound because of its mechanical movements. All this process corresponds with the MZ generation that wants to win some special things.
3. Opinion
The increasing consumption of vinyl records by the MZ generation is a common trend in K-pop and Western markets, and further research is needed to uncover the causes and implications of this phenomenon.
* References and quotations:
https://welcon.kocca.kr/ko/info/trend/1953646
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