The RA Exchange wraps up 2024 with an episode dedicated solely to vinyl culture, from dubplate production to record store culture, all-vinyl DJing and running labels that release records.

In the first part of this episode, which was recorded live at Wire Festival, panelists and vinyl DJs Mary Yuzovskaya, Clarisa Kimskii and Devoye Folkes discuss the benefits and drawbacks of playing records in the digital era with RA editor Gabriel Szatan.

According to the panelists, playing vinyl could be seen as a skill analogous to driving stick shift: while it's not always necessary, it gives new artists a better understanding of a DJ set's underlying machinery. They also talk about how a DJ's identity used to be intertwined with their personal collection of records, and how the digital paradigm shift presents today's DJs with infinite choices.

The Exchange's second half takes listeners behind the scenes, investigating the challenges and opportunities inherent in running a business based on vinyl sales. Live from Wall to Wall Festival at RSO, HHV Records, Bandcamp Berlin, Objects Manufacturing and Elevate Record Store speak to the overhead investment, production time and ecological considerations they take into account in their day-to-day operations.

They also shed light on the statistics behind the enormous sales of vinyl records in the past few years and the breakdown of which artists are making money from digital versus physical music sales and why.

Listen to the episode in full.