Everybody knows that the Compact Disc has died, replaced by a digital world where files and streams are the main methods of music delivery. The only problem with that statement is that the CD is not yet deceased by a long shot, and it’s still a real tool in the belt of artists and bands everywhere. Sure, it’s rapidly diminishing in importance, but important it still is. I know that most of you reading this don’t believe me, so let me give you three reasons as proof.
Reason #1: Last year there were 211 million CDs sold in the United States, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. While this number is down 78% from the format’s peak in 2000, it still amounted to around $2.5 billion in revenue, or about 35% of the income of the entire industry in the US. If you think that there’s weeping and gnashing of teeth in the business now (although there’s less than in the recent past), you’d hear some real wailing in record label boardrooms everywhere if the format were to disappear into the ether tomorrow.
Now 211 million of anything is a lot of units, but keep in mind that these are only the sales that the RIAA could count through their traditional distribution channels. This doesn’t account for all the CDs sold independently by artists at gigs, shows, church services, or online from personal or band websites, and who knows how many other outlets. And keep in mind that CDs are a high-margin item that makes not only more revenue per sale but more profit as well. An artist or band selling a few units per night might not seem like much, but this is occurring by the thousands daily, which adds up to real money that’s not on the books anywhere and never will be.
Reason #2: There are still certain audiences who would rather buy a CD than get their music from a digital alternative, like country, hard rock, and the church market to name a few. You can argue that this may be because these audiences are less tech savvy than the mainstream, but the fact of the matter is that they’re currently comfortable with the format and will happily make a purchase if they like what they hear. If you’re a label or artist, you have to give the customer what he wants.
Reason #3: Here’s a major issue that many digital proponents don’t understand. If you don’t have a CD, you can’t get reviewed. Reviewers just don’t take digital-only releases seriously, especially for newer artists, and unless a writer has that bright and shiny disc in his hands, the release doesn’t count. No disc, no review. Believe it or not, this also applies to bloggers, who ply their trade in the virtual world.
While most artists would rather play on a stage filled with broken glass than be part of some old-school distribution technology, the beautiful thing about our current digital world is that even the most physical-averse artist or label can press CDs without the hassle of buying a mass number of copies like in the past. CDs can now be purchased in extremely low quantities (as few as one) from on-demand companies like Kunaki or Trepstar, who will even drop-ship them to a customer if the purchase is through CD Baby or Amazon. A DIY artist or band no longer has to play the physical game as it was once played. Need 37 copies and not a disc more? It’s now possible.
Don’t take this article as the rant of someone still living in a music world gone by. I haven’t bought a CD in years and wouldn’t be bothered a bit if they disappeared tomorrow. In fact, I believe that the future of music is getting brighter as we live more and more in a streaming world, and it will eventually be as prosperous or more than the CD era at its peak. The fact of the matter is that while the CD market is clearly drying up, there’s still a lot of water left in that lake. CDs remain more important than you think in the grand scheme of an artist’s survival. Ignore the format at your own peril – at least for today.
