Since the creation of mp3 files and digital music, the music industry and even how we personally approach listening to music has drastically changed. It’s affected not only what we listen to, but how we listen to it, who we share it with, and how we share it. In the past, people would share cassette tapes or vinyl records with friends, typically listening to it together in the same room to share the experience. Now almost everyone gets their music from CD’s or, even more commonly, from an online store. Whether it’s from iTunes or from an illegal, file sharing website, music has gone digital.
It used to be that if you wanted to share your music with friends you’d have to either let them borrow your copy, make them a whole new copy, or the most common way of sharing music, listening with them. These days, not only do you not have to go to someone that you know or to a record shop, you wouldn’t even have to go anywhere. A whole new copy can be instantaneously produced in our, now standard, digital format. Any time, anywhere, for only a dollar, you can get that song that’s been stuck in your head and it’ll only take a click of a button. Another popular way of getting music digitally, especially amongst teens, is pirating. You can also go to file sharing websites and illegally pirate just about any artist you can imagine; one click, two seconds, zero dollars.
Because music is so readily available to anyone and everyone, peoples’ musical horizons have greatly widened. Typically speaking, because you couldn’t sample music and record shops were limited in what they could hold and offer, most people could only choose between a handful of artists they new, liked, and were used to. Now, people are more inclined to try listening to new music from all around the world. It’s free, there’s no hassle, and exploring new music in general can be a lot of fun.
However, there is a consequence to this accessibility and personal exploration that no one quite expected. Due to the fact that our music is so easily accessible that the old- school methods have become nearly archaic, the social element of recorded music has turned into a much more personal experience. This has become especially true with the invention of high-end headphones and small portable music players, such as iPods. It used to be that, if you wanted to listen to your music, you’d have to play it loud and proud for all to hear. Of course headphones have existed for quite some time, even in many of our parents’ or grandparents’ days, but not only would you have to sacrifice sound quality, you’d also have to be anchored to a big clunky machine the whole time. Without a doubt, the days of walking down the street with a ghetto blaster are now long gone.
MP3 files have not only changed the music industry, but also the social aspect of recorded music itself. People listen to so many different types of music in so many different ways. They spend a lot of time being very introverted with music, whereas in the past music was very social pastime. Every song you could ever want is readily available to you with just the click of a button, this simple fact makes people more inclined to listen to all types of music.
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