When iPods hit the scene 10 years ago, the small, white ear buds that came with the devices became the symbol for listening to music on the go. Today, that’s changing.
More and more people are expressing themselves with pricey headphones, with some fashion-forward music lovers rocking updated versions of the oversized headsets popular in earlier eras.
Bose has been known for its larger headphones in recent years, and now celebrities have taken note and aided in the resurgence of the ear amplifiers. In 2008, Monster debuted Beats by Dre with Dr. Dre, and it is the most recognizable of celebrity-branded headphones. Monster later released headphones with Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, Diddy, Daft Punk, Nick Cannon and LeBron James.
This year, 50 Cent, Quincy Jones and Ludacris released their own line of headphones.
Dre, the Grammy-winning rap legend who has produced hits for Eminem, 2Pac, 50 Cent and Mary J. Blige, says he is offended when he sees people using generic headphones.
“It’s almost like a knife in the heart,” he said while promoting the headphones last year. “We’re in the studio, at least me, for years at a time trying to work on music, tweaking it, trying to get the sound right, and for people to walk around and listen to the music on those cheap white headphones is ridiculous.”
But some people may have a reason for not buying Beats by Dre. The cheapest set costs $100, and the most expensive pair is $500. 50 Cent’s Sync by 50 ranges from $130 to $400, and the lowest price for Soul by Ludacris is $70; the highest is $300. (Partial profits from 50 Cent and Cannon’s headphones go to charity.)
“You go out and spend three, four hundred dollars on an iPod, and then you go put your earphones in and your iPod sounds like crap,” said Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Interscope, A&M and Geffen Records and co-launcher of Beats by Dre, as he was standing with Dre. “This is about releasing the sound that’s in the iPod.”
Monster Chief Executive Officer Noel Lee took it a step further: “Most people have never heard what their iPod sounds like.”
Research shows that most MP3 listeners own multiple headphones, according to Karim Noblecilla, director of product marketing for Sony’s Personal Audio Accessories division.
“That’s how we’re seeing the market,” she said. “People have two, three, even four sets for different purposes.”
