The walkman

Listening to the music was always a trend. Any decade can be considered and the music was a wide part of the culture. The tool by which they consumed music was different. Each era had a different tool. For my era it was the Walkman.

In mid 90s a few films, ads, and music videos made the Walkman popular. Walkman was a small portable device that would operate on batteries. Insert a casset, plug in the earphones, and you are ready to groove. The models and actors in the media would be shown to listening to the music using walkman. They would be shown to jive on the street listening to the music. They would appear cool while doing so. Youth automatically followed the trend. They all wanted the walkman. They all wanted to look as cool as their favorite actor. The cool kids would be spotted having a walkman in their hand and earphones in their ears. Even in public transport it was common to see the "cool" crowd carrying a walkman. Whether one listens to the music or not, walkman became a status symbol. If you have a walkman with you, you have elevated the status to cool.

Walkman became so popular that all leading electronic companies started manufacturing walkman. They released various versions to quench the requirement of the growing demand. Walkman was kept at the display in electronic shops. Still one may visit the electronic shop to buy a walkman, only to be told that the walkman is out of stock. The rage of walkman was so much that even roadside vendors came up with their version of walkman that was cheaper and of inferior quality. People were still buying from them.

When any trend blows out of proportion, it inflates as quickly. The same happened with the walkman. One major setback was the batteries. Walkman would consume the batteries quickly. Within few hours the batteries would drain and required to be replaced. The crowd found it tedious to frequently buy new batteries to appear cool. Besides everyone had a walkman, so either everyone was cool or noone was cool any longer. The device that ruled the hearts of the youth was struggling to find the significance after a couple of years. The market was oversaturated. The sales dropped. The popularity dropped. Everyone was looking for "the next big thing" to take over the market. By late 90s and early 2000s, the walkman was on its verge to disappear.

In my family, we had a walkman that was used by the entire family. My parents got bored after using it a couple of times. Me and my sister continued to use it till it was broken and beyond repair. We even have a few low resolution photos where we are trying to look cool by showing our walkman.

Nevertheless, walkman became a cultural phenomenon in 90s. Even today if you google symbols for 90s, you will find an image of the walkman. Walkman became iconic. It was viral before the term "viral" wss coined. Walkman could have been the inspiration for iPod, though it was released several years later. The rage of walkman can only be compared with Stanley Cup and Labubu. The difference wal that walkman was still affordable. It was available as per the budget.

The era of 90s and 2000s was truly phenomenal. The technology was evolving. New innovations were getting introduced and hyped. Each innovation would engulf the market, only to be engulfed by a newer product. Walkman had its turn and had a good run. Each millennial will have their special and unique memories with the walkman. Walkman had its special place in the hearts of millennials and it will still remain.