There was an interesting article published in Forbes this week pondering a scary question: Could Taylor Swift's 1989 be the last platinum album ever?
The record is almost assuredly going to hit the million-sales mark within its first week, as Billboard has already projected it to have sold 1.2 million copies by Monday. Forbes' Zack O'Malley casts doubt on whether it will ever happen, either in one week or the entire existence of a record.
Consider the facts: Swift's newest set is going to be the first, and possibly only, album released during 2014 that goes platinum. Compare that to this point last year when five records had already broken the sales mark. It will also be the first album to go platinum in one week since 2012, when Swift's own Red sold 1.21 million copies in its first seven days.
"I would like to believe that this recent achievement could be a sign of more to come," entertainment attorney Lori Landrew told Forbes. "I tend to believe that it is more an aberration that can be attributed to a super strong and loyal fan base."
The decrease in the number of platinum albums can be attributed to the lack of album sales in general. Sales of records are down 14 percent during 2014 and download sales are down 13 percent. The plus side is that streaming numbers are up a whopping 42 percent, which at least provides some source of revenue for performers. Landrew's comment of Swift's devoted fan base is accurate but that can't be relied on for many musicians. Even Beyoncé's self-titled release from 2013 has yet to hit the million mark this year.
Still, no platinum albums ever again is most likely a pessimistic stretch. O'Malley points out the country genre is still selling a fair amount of records, and we'll be as bold as to say Garth Brooks' November release will go platinum before the end of the year (if not as quickly as Swift). And you can never account for the random records that become a phenomenon. The Frozen soundtrack may have been released during 2013 but it's unlikely even Swift will catch it for total 2014 sales: The collection has sold more than 2 million copies this year on the back of smash hits like "Let It Go," which appeal to a huge demographic of parents and children.
