Key Takeaways
- Embrace offline music listening with portable devices to disconnect from constant internet connection.
- Portable audio devices protect personal data from being collected and sold by streaming services.
- Curate music intentionally by manually selecting songs, supporting artists more directly without relying on algorithms.
Streaming is by far the most common way of listening to music currently, and while I understand why that’s the case — convenience, ease of access, universal adoption, normalization, and all the rest — I don’t think that’s the be-all end-all of music listening in this day and age.
Rather, I think the overwhelming ubiquity of streaming is a sign that a lot of us need to scale it back a bit. I don’t always want to be connected to the internet, I don’t think that’s been good for me or for society as a whole. So I think that when it comes to music, a lot more of us should be using MP3 players, CD players, or other portable audio devices. Bonus points if it’s one you used in the 2000s, keep the e-waste to a minimum.
I can understand why this might not be an appealing idea for many, since we seem to value convenience a ton as a society these days. You can access millions of songs from a single application on your phone or your computer, all for a fairly low monthly cost, all things considered. But I want to push back against this need for convenience, and make the argument that it’s worth it to sacrifice a bit of convenience for the liberating feeling of being offline, as well as being more intentional with your music listening.
Retro tech is back for a reason — we yearn to be more offline
Many of us are nostalgic for a time that felt slower and calmer
For a while now, people on social media have been talking about retro tech they love, going back to analog technology, or even lower-tech digital devices. And while some of it may just be a fascination with the past or nostalgia, I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that we’re collectively tired of being so online all the time.
And here’s the great thing about portable audio devices like MP3 players and CD players — they’re not connected to the internet. They do one main thing, which is play music, and maybe have a few extra features. But they’re simple, and that’s the appeal. You can leave your phone at home and still have music, or you can take a break from the constant notifications, the buzzing, the need to check your timeline or your friends’ Instagram stories.
There’s less data of yours to collect and sell
If you’re offline, companies can’t profit off your information
Another great part of using portable audio devices that aren’t connected to the internet is that they can’t collect your personal data like streaming services do. It’s fair to feel worried about what these companies are doing with your data, how they’re profiting off of it and subsequently selling things to you.
Companies will often use customer data as a way of restructuring their user interface or other aspects of their software to figure out how to keep you locked in, and to figure out how to make you spend more money.
When you use streaming services, not only is your data being sold to other companies in order to use for advertising purposes, but internally, companies will often use customer data as a way of restructuring their user interface or other aspects of their software to figure out how to keep you locked in, and to figure out how to make you spend more money. These are called dark patterns, and they’re used by pretty much all companies to trick users into spending more, or become reliant on their product.
If you don’t want that done with your data, the best option is to not rely on these companies in the first place, and when it comes to media, that means relying on physical media and offline options instead of streaming services.
So, by using portable audio devices, you can avoid having more of your data taken and used in ways you don’t understand, and have some peace of mind that you’ve at least reduced that in one area of your life.
Using personal audio devices makes you more intentional about the music you listen to
When you have to manually load up your music, there’s no algorithmic input — and it requires some thought
When you decide to use an MP3 player, you’re then tasked with manually gathering the music you want to put on the device. This might sound tedious if you’re very accustomed to streaming, but I find it to be really lovely to curate my music intentionally when deciding what to put on my MP3 player. Sure, algorithms telling me what music I might like is objectively convenient, and occasionally helpful, but it does feel a bit inauthentic to the music listening and discovery experience.
No algorithm is a replacement for the human mind, be it your own, or the minds of your friends and peers. I know what I like, and my friends know me better than a computer, so I can figure out what to listen to and load it up on my own.
If you want to find new music to listen to without using the internet, ask your friends, or even a person working at a record store. They might have some good insight.
Additionally, I think it recenters the importance of supporting artists more directly if you have to buy CDs and digital albums and songs directly from the artist in order to listen to their music. That way you’re giving your money more directly to those whose art you’re enjoying, rather than giving them a fraction of a cent for every stream. Streaming services really do cheap out when it comes to paying artists, and if you want your favorite artists to keep making music, a fantastic way to support them monetarily is by actually buying their music, not just streaming it.
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