Gen Z are cancelling their Spotify premium accounts and turning to MP3 players due to the rising cost of subscriptions to the streaming service.
‘Broke’ youngsters have seemingly grown tired of paying for ‘rented’ music and said that they would rather put their money towards buying an MP3 player in a one-time fixed cost.
The gadgets came out in the 90s and rose in popularity as they got smaller and became more portable over the course of the 2000s. However, with the rise of smartphones, many music lovers moved to platforms like Spotify to download their songs.
However, increasingly pricey monthly memberships are driving a resurgence of MP3 players, with many frugal young adults opting to invest their money in the cheap device.
An individual premium account in the UK costs £11.99 a month, meaning single users will spend almost £145 a year to listen to their favourite tracks.
Some MP3 players, with enough internal storage for 2,000 songs, are being sold on Argos for as little as £19.99.
Simonalisa, thought to be from the US, has an Instagram account dedicated to her love of Noughties fashion and culture and said she no longer wants to shell out money on music every month.
The content creator, who is in her twenties, said in the clip: ‘I can’t be the only one that does not want to pay the Spotify premium membership. I’ve been toughing it out with those ads but you know what? I’ve had enough.
Leo, 19, is now using his old iPod to listen to music instead of paying for a monthly Spotify subscription
‘I got myself an MP3 player which has [storage] up to 64GB. I can put 12,000 songs on here, unlimited skips, I can pick the song I want to listen to on this little guy and I’m not paying $100 a year. Thank you.’
The video racked up 11,000 likes on the platform, with many commenters agreeing that MP3 players are the way forward.
One wrote: ‘Propaganda I will never fall for: Buying Spotify premium.’
Another penned: ‘Funny enough, I was helping my big sister clean out her room and found her old MP3 and she gave it to me, so yeah I will be doing this.’
A third said: ‘Me burning my playlists on CDs because I’m tired of the Spotify algorithm.’
A fourth commented: ‘I have one, it used to be my dad’s when he was younger now it’s mine and I adore it.’
In another Instagram video, Simonalisa wrote: ‘A broke girl with her MP3 player because subscriptions are too expensive.’
Leo, 19, is now using his old iPod to listen to music instead of paying for a monthly Spotify subscription.
One user, thought to be from south east Asia, said they had run out of their Spotify premium and is now using their Sony Walkman to listen to music
Many people commented on Simonalisa’s Instagram post and expressed their thoughts on MP3 players
He filmed himself adding songs to his scratched-up 18-year-old iPod via his computer and captioned the clip: ‘Spotify byeeee.’
Polly, from the UK, also did not want to pay £11.99 a month to listen to music, so she went ‘back to basics’ and dug out her old MP3 player.
Another TikTok user, thought to be from south east Asia, said they had run out of Spotify premium and decided to start uploading tracks to their old Sony Walkman instead.
Samuel Irene, 23, from Rochester in New York, made a TikTok video showing his MP3 player and said: ‘The biggest reason why I am no longer paying for Spotify Premium anymore.’
He then added: ‘MP3 players rule!’
Another TikTok user, from Norfolk in the US, said that she is going to go back to her trusty Sony Walkman to listen to music after a negative experience using Spotify.
She said in the clip: ‘Spotify is about to remind everyone why MP3 players were a thing. Y’all remember burning CDs? If you weren’t alive, get hip, start now, it’s never too late.
‘Sweet baby love, in what world do I pay you money for music that I already don’t get to keep. This is music on loan and then you’re still going to give me ads?
‘Do you know who never gave me ads? My Sony Walkman. I’ve still got him, it’s not a problem.’
She captioned the video: ‘You pulling the MP3 player out of storage? Because what’s happening on Spotify?’
The streaming platform also offers a duo account – which is shared between two people – is £16.99 a month and a family account, which is up to six accounts, costs £19.99 a month.
Students are able to get their account a discounted rate of £5.99 a month, which adds up to almost £72 a year.
Its competitor, Apple Music, has undercut the platform by £1 with its individual account, however, the prices for students and families are the same.
In 2023, Spotify raised the price of its single-account premium plan for the first time since 2011 to £10.99, but hiked it up again to £11.99.
Polly, a music fan from the UK, said she no longer wants to pa £11.99 for her account and has, instead, dug out her old MP3 player
Others wrote about their experience with Spotify and MP3 players X, as they expressed their excitement to go back to older tech
Rosario also posted on TikTok and said that she was ‘breaking up’ with Spotify this year and going back to her MP3 player.
She added: ‘Taking me & my 12,000+ songs somewhere else. But seriously, [I’m] so over paying for music!’
Another user said that they had ‘run out’ of Spotify premium and so they decided to dig out their old Sony Walkman.
Another American woman who goes by the username @grovy.space online said that she also cancelled her Spotify membership and moved to MP3.
‘I have my Garfield MP3 player. It has an SD card slot so I can listen to 32GB of music if I want to,’ she said in video.
Others have taken to X to express their excitement that old technology is coming back into fashion.
One wrote: ‘My MP3 player arrives today and I’m so excited I can download all my music and put it on there and stop relying on Spotify.’
Another penned: ‘All that Spotify ID verification makes me consider switching to Deezer or just get an MP3 player.’
A third said: ‘Spotify should launch a retro MP3 player that can hold playlists instead of CDs offline. Bring back the iPod.’
This comes after Gen Z’s obsession with vinyl in 2023 caused a huge hike in sales.
Industry statistics reported at the time suggested that vinyl sales are at their highest level in 33 years after declining in the 1980s and 1990s with the advent of the compact disc – which itself is enjoying a resurgence after losing out to MP3 players and services like Spotify.
In 2023, industry statistics reported at the time suggested that vinyl sales are at their highest level in 33 years after declining in the 1980s and 1990s (stock image)
More than 250,000 vinyl records were sold last week – the most sales in a seven-day period this century – and 5.9 million were bought throughout 2023, according to trade body BPI.
Stores say younger audiences are responsible for buying the majority of LPs, snapping up releases from the likes of Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo and Lewis Capaldi as well as classics from the likes of Pink Floyd and Fleetwood Mac.
But experts say the Gen Z push is also driven by a desire to support their favourite artists and to escape ‘streaming fatigue’, overwhelmed by the endlessly perfect curation of music attuned to their tastes that is served up by algorithms.
Peter Litchfield, a music producer, told the Daily Mail: ‘Younger generations are also experiencing streaming fatigue.
‘Like most online media, music consumption is algorithmically driven. It is cultivated for us. Much of the experience is passive.
‘Many are seeking a new, independent experience; something you feel more in control of, something you can take physical ownership of.
‘Showing your appreciation of vinyl on your social media channels is a way to express identity and taste, a way to stand out from the crowd.’
He added there still remains a nostalgia factor for the pops, crackles and warmth that come with playing a vinyl via an analogue needle.
Experts say the Gen Z push is also driven by a desire to support their favourite artists and to escape ‘streaming fatigue’ (stock image)
‘Where vinyl is concerned, audiophiles enjoy the analog nature of vinyl, appreciating the imperfections and unique character, and also make a case for its warmer, more authentic sound when compared to digital formats,’ he said.
‘There is this notion that “real music fans listen to vinyl”. In essence, vinyl has become cool again.’
Patrizia Leighton, director at HMV, told the Daily Mail the majority of turntable sales bought at Christmas were either purchased by or for Gen Z-ers – adding that other physical formats were also back in vogue.
She said: ‘Vinyl – as well as CD and to an extent cassette – has been strong all year, as the BPI results found.
‘HMV now makes up around 50 per cent of all physical sales in the UK and Christmas trading was strong for us across vinyl in particular. We also saw continued growth in CD and cassette, albeit the latter from a pretty low base.
‘We can be fairly certain that the upward trend will have continued to the end of the year across the industry.
‘We also saw really strong sales of turntables over the festive season with Gen-Z customers buying the bulk of those – or having them bought for them as gifts – which suggests there’s a healthy future for vinyl as new fans go on to build their collections.’
Daily Mail has contacted Spotify for comment.
