+

How 1 record company managed to get rid of a million unsold CDs.

Let's say you were a musician.

You work hard for a year writing and producing (and singing, of course) a new album, and, when you finally release it, buyers rush to the store with their money in hand.

Over 50,000 copies sell on the day of the release, which is doubly impressive because you launched your album only in the U.K. (where, hypothetically, you're from).


Nearly another 100,000 copies sell over the course of the debut week, and the album tops the national charts. Ultimately, the album goes "platinum" many times over, and you sell well over 2 million copies in Europe alone and probably around 5 million worldwide.

That sounds great, right? Right. But for record label EMI, it was, well, not.

The musician whose story is told above isn't a hypothetical person. He's Robbie Williams, one of the U.K.'s most well-known singers.

Robbie Williams performing in New York City in 2003. Photo by Frank Micelotta/Getty Images.

North Americans who can recall 1999 likely remember his only major success in this hemisphere, "Millennium," but if not, listen and watch here. The song topped the U.K. charts and is the only Robbie Williams song to make the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States.

In October 2002, Williams signed a four-album contract with EMI Records which, according to the BBC, earned him an U.K.-record £80 million (or about $125 million), still a record for music contracts in the nation.

The first two albums Williams delivered were unqualified successes; the first, "Escapology," sold over 2 million copies in the U.K. and more than a million more in Germany alone; the second, "Intensive Care," sold an estimated 6.2 million copies worldwide.

But the third album, "Rudebox," didn't do as well.

"Rudebox" came out in 2006, and although it topped out at 5 million, that took nearly a decade — and besides, EMI was expecting to sell about a million more.

And they had already produced that extra million CDs.

For two years, millions of copies of Williams' third album sat idle, unsold and undistributed to retailers.

The CDs were seemingly destined for the landfill, but in 2008, EMI found a buyer — maybe — for the extra inventory: an unnamed Chinese company which wanted every single leftover copy.

But the buyers in China weren't CD stores or, for that matter, interested in Williams' music at all.

The buyers weren't retailers or wholesalers or anything of the sort — they were road builders. Specifically, as reported by Contact Music, EMI crushed the CDs and shipped them to China so that the pulverized discs could be "used in street lighting and road surfacing projects." Apparently, crushed CDs make for good road safety.

Whether EMI made any money on the deal went unreported — its possible that they simply wanted the CDs out of their warehouses and found a company willing to haul them away.

Either way, in some areas of China, the streets aren't quite paved with gold, but they very well might be paved with an album that went platinum.

Dan Lewis runs the popular daily newsletter Now I Know ("Learn Something New Every Day, By Email"). To subscribe to his daily email, click here.

Pop Culture

Tired of 'hacks?' Here are 20 of the best life tips sourced from 21.9 million real people.

All of them are simple and practical. A few might just change your life.

Arjun Mahadevan's life pro tip Twitter thread

Arjun Mahadevan gave the world a gift when he crowdsourced the best “life pro tips” from nearly 22 million people. He shared the top 20 in a Twitter thread that’s got over 619,000 views. Mahadevan sourced the tips from the Life Pro Tips subforum on Reddit, which has been running since 2010.

Mahadevan is the CEO of doolaHQ which he calls the “business-in-a-box” for LLCs.

Mahadevan labeled his advice “20 life tips you wish you knew when you were 20,” but they are helpful for everyone regardless of age. They’re useful for anyone who is in a relationship, has a job or wants to stay sane in an aggravating world.

Keep ReadingShow less
Science

Fascinating video shows how an orangutan mom learned to nurse from a breastfeeding zookeeper

Zoe had been orphaned at a young age and hadn't developed her maternal instincts.

Metro Richmond Zoo/Youtube

Just two new moms helping each other.

Whitlee Turner, a zookeeper for the Metro Richmond Zoo in Virginia, was given a unique task—teach an orangutan to breastfeed.

Turner’s pupil, Zoe, had been orphaned at a young age, and without guidance presumably hadn’t learned any maternal instincts. Zoe’s first baby had to be hand-raised after she was unable to nurse, so when baby #2 came around, the zoo was determined to reach a different outcome.

That’s why they called on Turner, who had coincidentally also become a new mom. Thinking Zoe could be taught by example—a strategy that’s proven successful in the past—Turner was asked to bring her newborn son, Caleb, in to give a demonstration.

Turner agreed wholeheartedly.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pop Culture

People are loving Drew Barrymore's live reaction to her first perimenopause hot flash

“I don’t know that I have ever heard a celebrity talk about a hot flash in the moment. Thank you for being so real."

The Drew Barrymore Show/Youtube

Drew Barrymore getting a quick assist from Jennifer Aniston

It feels safe to say that many, if not most people hail Drew Barrymore as the “Queen of Candid.” She can seemingly talk to absolutely anyone about anything in a way that’s consistently warm and authentic.

That even goes for when she experiences her first hot flash in front of a live television audience, apparently.

While speaking with guests Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler on her talk show, Barrymore abruptly appears flustered, fanning herself and removing her jacket.

Without missing a beat, she says, “I am so hot, I think I'm having my first perimenopause hot flashes.”
Keep ReadingShow less

A subway station at 59th street in New York City.

New Yorkers may seem like a brash, uncaring bunch to the uninitiated. But when you get to know the people and the city, you’ll probably realize that they are “kind, but not nice,” as opposed to how many describe people on the West Coast as “nice, but not kind.”

A great example of New Yorkers looking out for one another happened on Reddit’s AskNYC subforum earlier this month. AskNYC is where New Yorkers consult one another on various topics, such as where to get cheap rent, subway shortcuts, and places to volunteer.

It all started when a Redditor named Andy, 21, who is autistic, reached out for help in a post titled, “Please help, where do I wait.” On the forum he goes by the name GalacticBambi. Andy is a native New Yorker who moved away at a young age. His father passed away two years ago, so he came back to the Big Apple to see his cousin and learn more about his father.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joy

Basketball referee has an emotional reunion with the player who saved his life on the court

Not many people survive a "widow maker," but thanks to the player's quick actions, this ref lived to call another game.

Basketball referee reunites with player who saved his life.

There are some things people are never quite prepared to experience, and a heart attack is high on that list. Semi-pro basketball referee John Sculli found himself on the receiving end of an unexpected heart attack, right in the middle of reffing a game.

Sculli was keenly watching the game between Toledo Glass City and the Jamestown Jackals when he went from following the players down the court to sprawled out on the ground. He was quickly surrounded by other referees, but his fall got the attention of Myles Copeland, who recognized Sculli was unresponsive and immediately began CPR.

"I had never witnessed someone just collapse, but I knew what had to be done," Copeland told CBS.

Turns out Copeland wasn't just a basketball player, he was also a firefighter, and his quick actions saved Sculli's life. Doctors told the referee and his fiancé, Donna, that he had a "widow maker" heart attack, which is often fatal. So when the two men got a chance to reconnect with Donna in tow, emotions ran high and CBS caught it on video.

Keep ReadingShow less

No more cleaning mattresses. Mom has a hack for stomach bugs.

Whether you have kids or plan to have kids in the future, you should know that you're going to clean up someone else's bodily fluids and waste. It's just a fact of caring for small children. In fact, you can almost guarantee that you're going to clean up vomit that exits a tiny person's body with more force than you knew possible. Is it fun? No. Does it help that kids are cute and just want cuddles when they're not feeling well? Absolutely.

There are all kinds of tips and tricks to make your little ones feel better during cootie season, which can sometimes feel year-round. Some people swear by homeopathic preventions and remedies while others stock up on vitamin C. But outside of Pedialyte popsicles and keeping a bucket nearby hoping for the best, there's not really a trick to surviving the dreaded stomach bug.

Except, maybe there is. A mom who runs the TikTok account @lovedthishatedthat may have just cracked the code to surviving those long nights when your kid has a stomach bug: an inflatable bed.

Keep ReadingShow less