When John Andrews, a Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter, announced the pre-sale of his new album, "Love For The Underdog," fans scrambled to secure their copies.
However, one lucky fan managed to get his hands on a pre-sale copy before anyone else and mysteriously listed it for sale on eBay, an online second-hand shopping platform.
"My friend was on eBay and was searching for signed albums and that's when he came across a listing for 'Love For The Underdog,' which is my record that was at that point several weeks away from even being released.
"The eBay listing had a photograph of the record that the seller took, so we knew that they had a physical copy; we were just really confused on how that could have happened," Andrews said.
Rather than reporting the listing, Andrews took matters into his own hands and decided to anonymously purchase his own vinyl with his friend’s eBay account.
A short while after, Andrews met the seller for pick-up in Union Square. Andrews had no idea what the seller looked like but was hopeful the seller could spot him in a crowd, as he made sure to wear the same outfit he wore on the album cover.
"I had a million things running through my head but then, this guy walked up to me. He didn't ask if I was the buyer on eBay or anything," Andrews said.
"He just walked right up to me and said 'Here's your record.' And once I put a face to him, any idea of confronting him just disappeared. I just said 'hi' and 'thank you,' then he just walked away and here I had my own record in my hands thinking about how I just paid $30 on my own music."
Thanks to a paparazzi-style photo taken by one of Andrew's friends who accompanied him on this eBay adventure, news of this strange encounter quickly spread throughout the music community on Twitter, and before long people were enjoying the weirdness of this story just as much as Andrews did.
Just a few hours after the exchange happened, Andrews reached out to the stranger for further clarification.
"He told me he found it at a used record store uptown, along with a bunch of other sealed records and he’s just flipping them on eBay," Andrews said.
While Andrews remains confused about how his unreleased music landed on eBay, he said it was possible that his album was stolen directly from the record factory and then sold to a record shop.
Regardless, he wanted his money back.
"After buying the record from this guy, I just thought it would also be funny if I listed that same record on eBay because I was confused on why I spent $30 on my own record and really wanted my money back," said Andrews.
"Plus, I thought it would be really hilarious and funny enough I ended up causing a bidding war over my own music 'cause I listed my vinyl as an auction."
Andrew's fans were undoubtedly enamored by the novelty of owning a record with a funny backstory. One anonymous buyer was so invested in this story they paid $137 for the copy. Andrews usually sells his vinyl for just $25. The record was signed and included a personal note from Andrews.
The situation raised some important questions regarding the potential for vinyl to be treated as a commodity rather than just a way for fans to listen to their favorite artists, Andrews said.
"Social media has made art feel so disposable and I think there will always be a charm to a physical object that you can hold in your hand. Hopefully, that continues to be a trend, despite this whole situation," Andrews said.
John Andrews & The Yawns are set to drop Love For The Underdog on April 28. For more information, including pre-orders to "Love For the Underdog," please click here.
