Hundreds flip through vinyls at first South Bend Record Show of the year

 

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Hundreds of music lovers came out to the first South Bend Record Show of the year.

It was the first of the bi-monthly event, bringing in dozens of vendors from near and far so visitors can take home the best tunes.

“We’re seeing younger people come out and getting excited about having physical media for the first time,” says Jeremy Bonfiglio, the Organizer of the South Bend Record Show.

Bonfiglio has been organizing the city’s record show for five years, and he says Sunday’s turnout for the first show of the year are numbers he hasn’t seen since pre-pandemic.

“We survived, now we’re thriving,” said Bonfiglio.

Five hundred people walked through the aisles of bins, flipping through the music of artists past and present.

Lots of young faces made up the 500, something that excites longtime collectors.

“I had a stack of Taylor Swift today and I sold them all to the same person,” shares Bonfiglio.

He credits Taylor Swift for revitalizing the excitement of owning vinyls in newer generations.

According to Billboard, more than 2 million vinyl records were sold in the US in just one week this past December, and Swift’s latest release was the number one seller.

“She’s done so much for vinyl with everything she’s done so a lot of people are discovering it for the first time and we’re seeing that,” Bonfiglio explains.

That’s why he says it’s refreshing to see young people taking an interest in the old-fashioned art.

“People who may be intimidated to walk into a shop, they come here for the first time, it’s a little bit overwhelming but they quickly realize everybody’s really nice and it’s just about the love of music,” says Bonfiglio.

The next South Bend Record Show will be on April 7.

You can stay up to date on their Facebook page and website.