Post Malone, Taylor Swift, Gracie Abrams vinyl releases lead Record Store Day 2025 sales: The numbers are in and, unsurprisingly, some of today’s biggest pop stars had some of the top-selling releases for the April 2025 edition of Record Store Day. Billboard reports that according to Luminate, which tallies music sales, Post Malone Tribute to Nirvana was the top-selling Record Store Day album. The release was the audio of a livestream that Post Malone did in 2020, at the height of the pandemic, to raise money for the World Health Organization. Post, who was also this year’s Record Store Day ambassador, is donating all proceeds from the vinyl to MusiCares’ Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Services. In terms of albums, the second-biggest seller was Gracie Abrams‘ Live from Radio City Music Hall double LP.
Hopkins, MN | Mill City Sound announces new ownership for Hopkins record store: The Hopkins record store says the new owners won’t “mess with what makes this place magic.” Mill City Sound, the Hopkins record store that recently celebrated its 10th anniversary, has announced a new ownership team. The shop announced this week that Scott P. Sayer and Casey Andrus will take the reins, promising that the duo has “zero plans to mess with what makes this place magic.” “We’re not here to reinvent the wheel,” Andrus said in a statement. “We’re here to keep it turning—and maybe throw a few more records on the shelf while we’re at it.” The record store was founded by Rob Sheeley, who died earlier this year at age 69, per the Star Tribune. Mill City Sound’s announcement says that the new owners have taken the reins “with his blessing.”
Hillman City, WA | absorb records Brings Heavy-Hitting Dance and Electronic Music to Hillman City: Behind a set of white doors and frosted glass windows on Rainier Avenue is absorb records, a new record store bringing a dose of dance and electronic music from around the world to its corner of Hillman City. Opening last month, the cozy shop—run by two friends, Zack W. and Kayvon K.—presents a sharp and lovingly curated mix of independent record labels, far-out genres, and seasoned artists for the heads, DJs, and dance music acolytes to dive right into. Often, getting one’s hands on obscure records from small labels requires a focused internet query, shipping costs, and lots of patience. absorb’s ethos is to bridge that gap by bringing those records to a physical shop here in Seattle.
Mission Viejo, CA | The cop who owns a record shop: The Rasta-Cowboy Records owner can’t wait to go on his month-long African safari. Tom Serafin stands behind the checkout counter of his shop as he speaks about his upcoming adventure. “The neat thing about having a store and being a one-person shop is that several times a year I put a sign on the door that says ‘gone to get vinyl’ and I go and travel the world,” he says. But embarking on an African safari isn’t out of the ordinary for Serafin. He has plans to swim with the whales in New Zealand, work at a sea turtle rescue in Costa Rica, and live in Hawaii for a year, to name a few. “The only thing I’m missing is the trek with the gorillas,” he says, “you know where you go walking up with them, and I’ll do that next year.” Rasta-Cowboy Records is packed floor to ceiling with vinyl, CDs, cassettes your parents once had, books, classic 1980s movies, collectable action figures, clothes and other various items Serafin has collected…
Asheville, NC | Citizen Vinyl expands vinyl record production: The event space, record and art store, and bar/café at the Citizen Vinyl record pressing plant will close on April 30 as the organization shifts its focus to the success and growth of manufacturing operations. Citizen Vinyl opened in October 2020 with just one record press and the mission to provide high quality vinyl albums for record labels and independent artists. It also featured a community space to host events ranging from live music and listening parties to panel discussions and book launches. The pivot away from the event venue will place more focus on Citizen Studios’ recording studio, which will remain in the Citizen-Times building with the vinyl record pressing plant. It will also enhance the ongoing development of the recently patented vinylkey technology, as this innovation continues to gain momentum in the record industry.
Audio-Technica’s new levitating turntable makes the ritual of vinyl more meditative than ever: It floats, it glows, it mesmerises—the Hotaru turntable is a design triumph in analog. Audio-Technica unveiled its new $9,999 turntable at Milan Design Week recently, and it has some very eye-catching features. The Hotaru turntable has been designed with beauty and function in mind, and the thing that makes it beautiful is the thing that improves its function. Using “powerful magnetic repulsion”, the upper section of the Hotaru levitates. The idea is that the floating structure isolates internal and external vibrations, making for a smoother and more defined playback. As pointed out by The Verge, this is not the first turntable to use magnets to levitate a record. The MAG-LEV Audio turntable featured a spinning plate, whereas the Hotaru lifts the entire upper section—including the tone arm and DC servo motor that actually spins the record.
Philadelphia, PA | The South Street Vinyl Block Party Is Taking Place Outside of Repo Records Featuring 15,000 LPs & Dollar Bins: The South Street Vinyl Block Party is back. Presented by Record Riots & Repo Records, this year’s event will take place during South Street Live on Saturday May 3rd from 10 am to 5 pm right outside of Repo Records (between 5th & 6th). Record enthusiasts will get to peruse over 15,000 LPs and enjoy “over 40 tables of LPs, CDs, 45s, vintage clothes, crystals and more. Great music all day long. Free admission. Dealers from all over the Philly area and beyond. Come hang out on South Street and dig for vinyl with your friends! See you in the dollar bins!”
Madison, WI | Physical media is making a comeback and UW-Madison is joining: Owning the music you listen to can be extremely rewarding, and students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison recognize this. There is nothing like placing a vinyl on a turntable or popping a CD into its player. Owning the music you listen to can be extremely rewarding, and students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison recognize this. “The full experience of the artist is through the vinyl,” junior Julian Wood told The Daily Cardinal, noting sound quality is better than listening online or with CDs. …However, UW-Madison students are part of a larger resurgence in physical media use among younger audiences. As early as 2007, global vinyl record sales started increasing every year. In the U.S., more than 43 million vinyl records were sold in 2024. Aesthetic appeals and nostalgia have partly fueled this comeback. Wood said he got into vinyl because of his parents.
Changing the record: Gen Z, music and the culture of collecting: Sabrina Carpenter’s Fortnite skin brings to life the power of embracing fandom across platforms. …There was a recent survey conducted on vinyl fans across the globe showing that more 18-24 year-olds are listening to vinyl, cassettes and CDs than any other age group. Young people are reviving the vinyl trend of the 90s with a modern twist. The current craze is building strong musical communities both in record stores and online, finding the less obvious ways to enjoy music. And Gen Z, who are both ‘digital-native’ and simultaneously craving a return to pre-digital era trends, is lapping it up.
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