While streaming services have been a great boon for music accessibility, it is important to recognize the importance of physical owning a physical recording of music you love. Music becomes a part of you, weaving itself into your heartstrings, and it sucks when it disappears and remains only in your head.

As an advocate for physical media, please find three arguments for the importance of physical media: ownership, preservation, and accessibility.

Ownership and Control

With physical media like DVDs, books, and CDs, you own and control what you purchase.

Digital content is often tied to proprietary platforms or ecosystems (for example, Netflix, Amazon, or Steam). If a company loses licensing rights or chooses to modify its catalog, content can be removed or altered without the user’s consent. Movies or television shows may be edited, remastered, or even replaced entirely without user consent.

Unlike digital content, which can be removed or restricted by a service provider, physical media remains accessible as long as you have the equipment to use it, with no need for subscriptions or accounts to access content.

Preservation of Content

Physical media is a crucial tool for the preservation of content. Digital platforms often rotate or remove content, and companies may retroactively edit or censor content based on changing societal norms, legal pressures, or market preferences. Examples include video games being patched, books being rewritten, or movies having scenes removed or altered.

Physical copies preserve the original version as it was created, ensuring unabridged access to films, music, books, and games that might otherwise disappear.

Offline Accessibility

Physical media provides superior accessibility, as it does not rely on internet connectivity or external servers, proving a reliable option in areas with poor internet or during outages. It is not subject to buffering, throttling, or fluctuating quality based on bandwidth.

Digital content relies on servers, accounts, and devices that require constant maintenance and compatibility. If a service decides to sunset older devices or software versions, users may find themselves locked out of their own collections.

I believe physical media is important to promoting true ownership, preserving art, and maintaining accessibility.

Please find below images of albums I am unable to access on streaming services. I have been forced to seek out physical copies to continue enjoying music I have fallen in love with.

I wish to post these album images as a reminder of the importance of never letting physical media leave us entirely, and to share some fantastic and hard-to-find music. I encourage you to seek out your own copies of these albums and support the artists directly if possible.