Taylor Swift Effect, US Vinyl Sales Reach IDR 15.7 Trillion for the First Time Since 1983

JAKARTA - The United States record music industry has made a new history with fantastic achievements throughout 2025.

Based on the annual report of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the total revenue of the music industry in the Uncle Sam's country jumped to reach 11.5 billion US dollars or equivalent to Rp. 181 trillion.

The most striking phenomenon in this report is the resurgence of vinyl which managed to surpass the sales figure of 1 billion US dollars (around Rp15.7 trillion) for the first time since 1983.

The significant spike is inseparable from the great influence of Taylor Swift, who through her latest album, "Life of a Showgirl", managed to sell around 1.6 million units in vinyl format alone. This figure places it as the main engine driving physical records in the midst of the digital era.

Not only Swift, Sabrina Carpenter who was named Variety's 2025 Hitmaker of the Year also made a big contribution through her two albums, "Man's Best Friend" and "Short n' Sweet", which sold almost 600,000 vinyl units.

Technically, vinyl sales volume increased by 7.9 percent from 43.4 million units in 2024 to 46.8 million units in 2025. Although its annual growth is no longer reaching double digits as it was at the beginning of the 2010s period, this consistency marks the 19th consecutive year of vinyl revenue growth.

Currently, the United States accounts for more than half of global vinyl revenue, as well as the world's largest market for paid streaming subscription services.

RIAA Research Vice President Matt Bass said this trend shows how deep the connection between fans and their idols is.

"Fans are consuming music from the artists they love in more ways than ever before, and that passion is reflected in today's report," said Matt Bass, quoted by Variety, Tuesday, March 17.

"AS recorded music has shown continued growth globally, reaching 6.4 billion US dollars in paid subscriptions alone and accounting for 50 percent of global vinyl revenue," Bass added.

Meanwhile, the Chairman and CEO of the RIAA, Mitch Glazier, emphasized that the music industry is not just entertainment, but a solid economic pillar for the United States.

"Through all of this, music remains a cultural cornerstone and a growing economic force for the US, contributing 212 billion dollars to our GDP and supporting more than 2.5 million jobs in America," said Glazier.

In addition to the physical sector, revenue from the streaming sector as a whole also grew to 9.5 billion US dollars, representing 82 percent of total music revenue in the United States. The number of paid streaming accounts has now reached 106.5 million users.

Interestingly, even though digital technology continues to dominate, vinyl still dominates far ahead in the physical format category by generating three times more revenue than CD sales in the same year.