BENTON, Ark — How we do anything changes constantly— though it may sound vague, think about any electronic you use. You're upgrading every few months or years, using the latest and new greatest item.
The same is true for how we listen to music. We now live in the age of streaming, but just a few decades ago, vinyl records dominated the charts.
Since then, we've seen CDs, MP3 players, and streaming services take over, but there's always been a dedicated base of collectors, keeping vinyl records alive.
Recently, that base has been growing by groups you may not expect.
"I've got six year old's that come in here, and their parents let them pick out albums, and they're not just picking out kids albums," Audra McAnally-Parsons said. "They're picking out rock, and AC/DC, I mean they're picking all of it out."
McAnally-Parsons owns Retro Rose, a record shop in Benton. She opened her doors three years ago, trying to cater to any and all music tastes.
She said their client base is interesting, from customers listening to older rock and rap, and then younger fans interested in artists like Taylor Swift.
It's an interesting trend for her to see— younger generations are getting interested in and collecting their own records.
"We have a big, like, young teenage range," she explained.
That's a base they're catering to. The night of Taylor Swift's release of her Speak Now (Taylor's Version), Retro Rose hosted a listening party for those fans.
That interest— from both young and new fans— has had record sales climbing.
Data from the Recording Industry Association of America shows that physical sales of vinyl records have climbed over the past three years.
A year-end report from Luminate, which focuses on music and entertainment data, has vinyl as the highest-selling form of physical copies of albums.
Taylor Swift is, of course, the biggest seller on the list, but the classics are just as high. Fleetwood Mac, Michael Jackson, and The Beatles round out the top 10.
"I do think the statistics are crazy of how much it continues to grow," McAnally-Parsons said.
Of course, it isn't just Retro Rose that has been seeing the benefits of this spike.
"Thanks, Taylor Swift!" Wes Howerton said. "Taylor and Adele, and other people like that, really embracing the idea and pushing to have a lot of their records pressed."
Howerton moved back home from Seattle to start Control Records four years ago, and he's seen that rise for himself—as well as who's driving it.
"When I first moved to Seattle, most record stores in Seattle were still like two-thirds CDs, one-third vinyl," he said. "Everyone is moving over, I don't even sell CDs."
This resurgence isn't one that surprises him, though. He said it's about more than just music.
"Just come in here and connect to something, whether they're connected to Queen or they're connected to SZA or Tyler, the Creator," he said. "I just, I think this is a thing that people get the chance to connect to, and this is the way to do it, you know?"
Connecting and collecting are really two sides of the same record. Some of the most popular albums can hold their worth for decades.
Websites like Discogs can help track those prices.
Howerton will tell you, while the rush to collect is great, it's best to build up your collection over time.
"This is a chance for them to slow down and engage with something," Howerton said. "I think that we as human beings, that's what we want out of life is to engage with something, and records are a way to engage with art and with music."
So whether you're a fan of the classics, or just starting out, this rise is something both shops want to see keep charting up.
"Every year it's better and better, so hopefully it stays on the uprise," McAnally-Parsons said.