Big Idea: Cricket Wireless Introduces Vinyl Voicemails

Note: It was on this day, 22 years ago, that Adpulp.com first published a series of very short articles. October 2004 was a time before social media, and a time when personal blogs (and a handful of professional blogs) were beginning to take off. As is the case with the industries we cover here, a lot has changed since then, including asking people to visit a website. Yet, here is the website I continue to return to with things I want to share with you. Things that stand out. Things that matter. So, thank you for being here to read this musing. And thank you for considering what follows. 

Phones today often contain important voice notes and voicemails that people want to hold onto. Whether they’re birthday greetings, butt dials, or the last time you heard from someone, these recordings are treasured moments from friends and family. You don’t want to lose them when you lose or switch phones. Now there is a way to preserve these favorite audio files, transform them into analog media, and display them as a collectible artifact.

Thanks to insightful thinking from Cricket Wireless and its creative agency ARGONAUT, people (with an invitation to the brand’s special events) can opt for one-of-a-kind Vinyl Voicemails. By turning one of the most intimate forms of modern communication—the saved voice of a loved one—into a lasting physical object, Cricket is making its core brand promise of connectivity ‘visible, human, and permanent’.

The analog transformation came to life last week at DUMBO record store Vinyl + Thread, where audio was transferred directly from a participant’s phone into a cutting system operated by boutique audio fabrication studio Tangible Formats. A blank vinyl disc was placed on a live lathe, and the recording was physically etched into the surface in real time.

Each record was individually cut as a true one-off and paired with custom sleeve artwork designed by NYC artist Landon Khiry.

Cricket Wireless promoted the event with teasers that included a voicemail from the Green Lady of Brooklyn.

“It just feels really good to know that I’ll have this physical recording of my grandmother’s voice forever,” said one attendee. “I can see myself in the future just like sitting in front of my record player and like running that back over and over and over again.”

Beyond the novelty of live lathe cutting, the event taps into a broader cultural shift. As life becomes increasingly saturated with ephemeral digital media, people are actively seeking tangible, analog connections—from film cameras and physical books to vinyl records.

“We’re surrounded by disposable digital files, but people are craving things they can actually hold onto,” says Cindy Rozier, Cricket Wireless Assistant Vice President of Marketing for Brand, Advertising, and National Sponsorships.

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About David Burn

David Burn is the co-founder, editor, and publisher of Adpulp.com. David joined the ad agency business in 1997 as a copywriter and then worked for seven agencies in five states prior to launching Bonehook in 2010. Today, David is a writer, brand strategist, and leader of creative teams in Austin, TX.