{"id":280,"date":"2025-04-17T12:45:41","date_gmt":"2025-04-17T11:45:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/?p=280"},"modified":"2025-05-06T16:08:09","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T15:08:09","slug":"newcastle-upon-tyne-sees-its-biggest-record-store-day-to-date","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/2025\/04\/17\/newcastle-upon-tyne-sees-its-biggest-record-store-day-to-date\/","title":{"rendered":"Newcastle upon Tyne sees its biggest Record Store Day to date"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Alan Jordan, owner of one of Newcastle&#8217;s largest independent record stores, Reflex, said, \u201cthis is our biggest Record Store Day to date.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Record Store Day 2025 welcomed thousands of vinyl lovers throughout the city of Newcastle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This year there were five independent record stores in Newcastle participating in Record Store Day&#8217;s 18th annual event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Record collectors began queueing outside of Newcastle\u2019s independent record stores, as early as 8:00pm the night before the event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Fans were excited to try and get their hands on the<a href=\"https:\/\/irp.cdn-website.com\/67794b89\/files\/uploaded\/RSD25_Releases_PDF_%2817%29.pdf\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/irp.cdn-website.com\/67794b89\/files\/uploaded\/RSD25_Releases_PDF_%2817%29.pdf\"> <span style=\"text-decoration: underline\">433 different, exclusive records<\/span> <\/a>available from major artists such as Taylor Swift, Gracie Abrams, and Sam Fender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Record Store Day 2025 Queue\" width=\"810\" height=\"608\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/12m5sfT7B5Q?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Queue outside of Reflex at 08:00am for Record Store Day 2025. Credit: Amy Mescus<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>On Nun Street, Reflex had queues stretching as far as Grey\u2019s Monument before the store opened at 8:00am.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Leah, 22, arrived at Reflex at 1:15am after 30 minutes of sleep and said, \u201cthere were already 15 people in line\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She said, \u201cthere are so many more people queueing up this year,\u201d but successfully left with all the records on her Record Store Day wish list, including popular titles such as Taylor Swift&nbsp;and Charli XCX.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Matt, 27, has been attending Record Store Day since 2016 and was also hoping to buy Charli XCX\u2019s limited records. He arrived at 5:30am and said he had, \u201cnever seen [Record Store Day] this busy before\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When asked what Record Store Day means to him, Matt replied, \u201cit\u2019s important now more than ever to support small, independent businesses\u201d. He said, \u201cit&#8217;s also a fun opportunity to meet people with the same interests as you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"719\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/IMG_1243-2-719x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-337\" style=\"width:404px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/IMG_1243-2-719x1024.jpg 719w, https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/IMG_1243-2-211x300.jpg 211w, https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/IMG_1243-2-768x1094.jpg 768w, https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/IMG_1243-2-1079x1536.jpg 1079w, https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/IMG_1243-2.jpg 1170w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 719px) 100vw, 719px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Owner Alan Jordan told the queue that the rare Wicked soundtrack record had already sold out, only 30 minutes after the store opened at 8:00am.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>2025 was a special Record Store Day for Newcastle in particular as local rockstar Sam Fender was this year\u2019s ambassador for the event.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Alan Jordan said he is \u201cbuzzing\u201d to have Sam Fender as this year\u2019s ambassador for Record Store Day.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He said Sam has always \u201cstayed true to his roots,\u201d which is \u201cexactly what independent record stores are all about &#8211; community, authenticity, and passion for music.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Record Store Day has always been an important event for indie record stores, helping them stay afloat during the rise of digital music and the current expensive cost of living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Last year, Record Store Day was expected to deliver a <span style=\"text-decoration: underline\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.recordstoreday.co.uk\/record-store-day-set-to-deliver-10m-boost-to-indie-record-shops#:~:text=Article-,RECORD%20STORE%20DAY%20SET%20TO%20DELIVER%20\u00a310M%20BOOST%20TO,is%20likely%20to%20be%20higher.\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.recordstoreday.co.uk\/record-store-day-set-to-deliver-10m-boost-to-indie-record-shops#:~:text=Article-,RECORD%20STORE%20DAY%20SET%20TO%20DELIVER%20\u00a310M%20BOOST%20TO,is%20likely%20to%20be%20higher.\">\u00a39.7 million boost <\/a><\/span>to independent record stores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>ERA (Entertainment and Retail Association) CEO Kim Bayley said, \u201cwithout Record Store Day, many [independent record stores] would find it difficult to stay in business.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"701\" src=\"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/Sales-Revenue-Chart-1024x701.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-310\" srcset=\"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/Sales-Revenue-Chart-1024x701.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/Sales-Revenue-Chart-300x205.jpg 300w, https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/Sales-Revenue-Chart-768x525.jpg 768w, https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/24126\/2025\/04\/Sales-Revenue-Chart.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Record Store Day also contributes to the <a href=\"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/2025\/04\/23\/back-in-the-groove-why-are-vinyl-records-becoming-mainstream-again\/?preview_id=284&amp;preview_nonce=fc46545f0d&amp;preview=true\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline\">resurgence in popularity for vinyl records worldwide<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Other contributing factors to vinyl records\u2019 increase in popularity include nostalgia, aesthetics, collectability, and digital burnout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Data from the Official Charts Company showed that last year <a href=\"https:\/\/www.officialcharts.com\/chart-news\/record-store-day-taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-biggest-weekly-vinyl-sales\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline\">306,791<\/span><\/a> vinyl records were sold during the week of Record Store Day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The first quarter of 2024 saw a mean average of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.musicweek.com\/labels\/read\/ahead-of-record-store-day-physical-sales-surge-in-q1-as-uk-artists-make-a-chart-impact\/091694\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.musicweek.com\/labels\/read\/ahead-of-record-store-day-physical-sales-surge-in-q1-as-uk-artists-make-a-chart-impact\/091694\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline\">125,549<\/span><\/a> weekly vinyl record sales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>2024 saw vinyl unit sales 17th consecutive year for growth, which aligns with the launch of Record Store Day in 2007.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though official nationwide statistics are not released yet, it is expected that Record Store Day 2025 will continue this streak.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Record Store Day 2025 welcomed thousands of vinyl lovers throughout the city of Newcastle.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":278,"featured_media":296,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wds_primary_category":69,"footnotes":""},"categories":[69,44],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-280","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-reports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/280","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/278"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=280"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/280\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/296"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=280"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=280"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journalists.org.uk\/amy-mescus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=280"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}