How Vinyl Marketplace Discogs Is Helping L.A. Wildfire Recovery

by · Forbes
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 8: Flames from the Palisades Fire burn a building on Sunset ... [+] Boulevard amid a powerful windstorm on January 8, 2025 in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Fueled by intense Santa Ana Winds, the Palisades Fire has grown to over 15,000 acres and 30,000 people have been ordered to evacuate while a second major fire continues to burn near Eaton Canyon in Altadena. (Photo by Apu Gomes/Getty Images)Getty Images

This week, record collectors can help raise funds for L.A. wildfire recovery while shopping for new LPs.

Discogs — an online marketplace for music collectors — plans to donate revenue from Friday sales to aid those impacted by the ongoing fires in Southern California, the Oregon-based company announced earlier this week. The fundraising effort benefits MuisiCares, a non-profit wing of the Record Academy.

“Our hearts go out to everyone impacted,” said a statement on the Discogs website. “Your safety and well-being are the main concerns of the Discogs team and the rest of the community.

The statement continued, “Now is the time for us to come together and support our fellow collectors, record stores, and artists. With your help, we can have a real, positive impact.”

MusiCares offers to assist industry professionals impacted by the wildfires with short-term financial assistance for necessities such as relocation or groceries, and long-term needs including health care and equipment replacement.

BANGKOK, THAILAND - 2019/01/09: In this photo illustration, the Discogs application seen displayed ... [+] on an Android smartphone with a vintage turntable in the background. (Photo Illustration by Guillaume Payen/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)LightRocket via Getty Images

Shoppers with a Discogs account can by sought-after vinyl, cassette or CDs sold by platform users, who log collections — including new purchases, album variants and release-specific liner notes — on the site. Some of the top-collected albums of 2024 included Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department (No. 1 on the list), Chappell Roan’s The Rise & Fall Of A Midwest Princess (No. 9) and Jack White’s No Name (No. 21).

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And Discogs joins a growing list of those offering aid to music industry professionals impacted by what some estimate may be the costliest disaster in U.S. history. Amazon Music pledged $10 million toward relief efforts and Beyoncé offered $2.5 million via her BeyGOOD Foundation, while Metallica contributed $500,000 by way of the band’s All Within My Hands Foundation.

Find more information on the fundraising effort at Discogs.com.