It’s been rumored to happen for for the past few months but – as of today – the decision to make Friday the worldwide record release day is official. The change will go into effect this Summer.
According to a statement from the International Federation of of the Phonographic Industry, a study showed that consumers preferred to listen to their new music on Friday and Saturdays as opposed to the actual album release days. A further explanation goes on to say why the Friday change is necessary:
Following consultation with artists, musicians unions, record companies and retailers, it was confirmed today that the release day for new music will be aligned internationally on a Friday.
Release days currently vary from one country to another, causing frustration for consumers when music fans in other parts of the world can access new releases before them. As well as helping music fans, the move will benefit artists who want to harness social media to promote their new music. It also creates the opportunity to re-ignite excitement and a sense of occasion around the release of new music.
The move to an aligned global release day will also reduce the risk of piracy by narrowing the gap between release days in different countries
This is big news for the music industry, but how big? Some of the biggest albums from 2014 have been surprise release, D’Angelo, Beyonce, U2, and most recently Drake. Even Kanye said in an interview last week about his album “I’m trying to get it finished. I’m trying to get it to the people … Release dates is played out. So the surprise is going to be a surprise. There go the surprise.”
