We live in a time where music has never been so abundant. Every week, dozens of new albums appear, streaming services highlight fresh releases, and social media keeps reminding us (including us) of what we “should” be listening to. It is exciting, of course, but also overwhelming. With so much coming at us, it is natural to pause and wonder: Do we really need all of this? Does the world truly need one more album?

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Was it really necessary? Does this record actually add anything?

It is a blunt question, but one that comes up now and then, even before we hit play. Does the world truly need yet another album?

Maybe we ask ourselves this because we are drowning in a constant tide of new releases, a stream that never stops filling our feeds, inboxes, and notifications. After all, we already have more than enough albums we love: gems, irreplaceable wonders, personal classics that feel untouchable.

But I think the answer is yes.

Not necessarily for “the universe” as a whole. But if even one part of that universe needs it, then yes, in its own way, the universe does need it.

First and foremost, the artist needs it. Creating an album means giving shape to something that did not exist before, turning an intuition into notes, into sound, into emotion to be shared. It is a form of self-realization: bringing out what would otherwise remain locked inside. And for an artist, that can be essential. Jazz does not need every musician to release an album. But every musician certainly needs, at some point, to release one, if only to express themselves, or to measure themselves against the world.

Then come the listeners. Not all of them, but those who will be touched, maybe for reasons far removed from what the artist intended. For them, the album might become something precious, a spark, a light, a companion for a moment, or even for a lifetime. That alone is also enough to make it necessary.

So why do we keep asking, “Does the world really need this album?”

Probably because we feel pressured to react to every release. As if each new record demanded our attention. But in truth, it does not. We do not have to listen to everything. We do not have to comment on everything.

The real question, then, is not “Does the world need this album?” but rather “Do I need this album in my world?” That is the heart of it. Not to question its existence, but to accept it without necessarily engaging with it. Or, on the contrary, to let it in, to the point where it becomes an intimate part of our own universe.

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And you, what do you think? Does the world really need every new album, or is it more about the ones that matter in your world? Drop your thoughts in the comments, I would love to read them.