Pearl Jam will serve as the official ambassadors of Record Store Day 2019, set to take place April 13th at independent record stores around the world.
To accompany the announcement, Pearl Jam shared a video in which guitarist Mike McCready goes crate-digging and discusses the important role record stores have played in his life. The clip is interspersed with footage of Pearl Jam bashing out their their Riot Act track, “Save You,” for a small crowd at a record store.
“Independent record stores are hugely important to me, and have been ever since I was 12 years-old,” McCready said in a statement. “Before I even really knew what they were – there was a certain feeling of ‘this is a dream come true,’ and it’s a wonderland and there’s so much to learn in here… and it’s still that way.”
He continued, “Support every independent record store that you can… It kind of takes an effort, you have to look for something that you want; you have to talk to people. I had to talk to people to figure out which Aerosmith record to get first or anything back in the day. It’s a place to learn. It’s a place to have fun. And it’s a place to discover new music.”
Last year’s Record Store Day ambassador was the rap duo Run the Jewels, while previous artists to hold the title include St. Vincent, Metallica, Iggy Pop, Jack White and Chuck D. A complete list of participating retailers is available on the Record Store Day website.