Why I'm Buying Music Again in 2026

I bought an MP3 player for my daughter.That sent me down a rabbit hole of downloading old purchases, ripping CDs, and realizing I don’t actually own most of the music I’ve paid for.It started with trying to avoid smartphones and finding a simple device — the Innioasis Y1 — that just plays music.But once I had it, I had to answer an important question: Where is my music?Between Apple Music, Amazon Music, Bandcamp, and old CDs, I’d built up a decent collection over the years — and then handed control of it to streaming platforms without really thinking about it.So I started pulling it all back.In this episode, I talk about:* Rebuilding my personal music library* Why buying DRM-free files matters to me now* How this fits into my Year of Digital DetoxThis is about music. But it’s also about convenience, control, and what we quietly give up when everything lives in the cloud.If you’ve thought about owning your media again — or you think I’m overthinking this — come tell me.Show NotesInnoasis Y1 Player – https://www.innioasis.com/products/y1Sketchnote Lab – https://sketchnotelab.substack.comBandcamp – https://bandcamp.comPlex – https://www.plex.tvSubscribe at https://paperandsmoke.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit paperandsmoke.com