Tyler, The Creator has always had a bit more of a hipster cache than other rappers. Today that popularity with the record-buying public has paid off as Stereogum reports that the Los Angeles rapper has set a record for the largest vinyl sales week for any hip-hop record ever. Call Me If You Get Lost, his excellent album from last year sold the most vinyl copies for a rap record since 1991, which is when Billboard’s data company Luminate started keeping track of these sorts of sales.
The album recently won a Grammy at the 2022 awards, which certainly helped it sell a few more copies. While the album was released in June 2021, it just now started taking pre-orders for the vinyl version, which explains the late sales boom. With sales for the vinyl edition nearing 50,000, it shot the album back up to the top of the Billboard 200 list.
The album features DJ Drama and is a callback to the classic Gangsta Grillz mixtapes of the mid-00s. It has standout features by artists like Lil Wayne (who was a star of the Gangsta Grillz series), Domo Genesis, Lil Uzi Vert and has production work by Jamie xx and Jay Versace.
The boom in sales isn’t just impressive for a rap record; it’s the ninth highest week of vinyl sales for any genre, joining Taylor Swift among others. It surpassed Kid Cudi’s 2021 album Man On The Moon III: The Chosen, the previous record-holder for vinyl rap records.
One last impressive note – Tyler, The Creator’s album becomes the fourth record to return to #1 following the release of a vinyl edition. He joins the aforementioned Swift and Olivia Rodrigo in that company.
Lesson here? People are buying vinyl – and not just hipsters – and it’s probably likely that Tyler’s record will be surpassed sooner than later. Perhaps he will break his own record?
Photo Credit: Mauricio Alvarado
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