Interview with Ian Fraser from Obsolete Records

Thursday, May 17, 2012

by Matthew J (@IamJamesMatthew)

There is no denying it; the retail music business has been in a serious decline. Big retail chains such as SAM THE RECORD MAN and CD Plus have been closing up shops all of the country and in similar fashion, many independently-owned record stores are closing their doors, as well. What’s causing all this? The popular business notion is that downloadable music -by way of the internet- has taken money from the stores leaving them with no choice but to close their doors. In other words, we can’t compete with the internet so let’s just quit without putting up a fight.

Enter Ian Fraser, the owner and operator of OBSOLETE RECORDS, who rather than following the so-called “popular notion” is going against the grain and providing his loyal and still growing customer base with the hard-to-find; sought-after physical records which the other stores aren’t carrying.

I sat down with Ian to talk about the current retail business, downloading music vs. owning physical recordings debate, his personal playlist, and more. Hard work isn’t a new concept and although he’s not a fan of Curtis Jackson’s music, Ian does embody the hustler’s ambition: be your own boss, provide people with great music, and get paid while doing it.

Read the full interview here.