62-year-old Zero Freitas is buying every vinyl record he can find. The New York Times reports that the Brazilian businessman's collection currently spans "several million albums" and that total is still growing. Just last year, more than a dozen 40-foot-long shipping containers delivered hundreds of thousands of new acquisitions to the warehouse where Freitas' hoard resides.
"I’ve gone to therapy for 40 years to try to explain this to myself."
"I’ve gone to therapy for 40 years to try to explain this to myself," he tells The New York Times. Freitas isn't alone in his pursuit. He has a team of scouts spread across the world, all tasked to assist him in procuring more records. Thanks to them, he owns almost everything that has been recorded in Cuba as well as Bob Hope's personal stash. Freitas also employs a team of college interns who are responsible for cataloging his ever-expanding trove. His New York buyer Allan Bastos estimates it would take years to complete this feat. "Probably 20 years, I think."
In the future, Freitas hopes to make his vast archive available to the public. Dubbed "Emporium Musical," it will function similar to a library, except with an assortment of listening stations. As music archivist Bob George told Freitas, "What's the good of having it if you can't do something with it or share it?"