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Airbnb now lets you rent a room in New York City's biggest record store

If you have ever dreamed of waking up surrounded by music, Airbnb is about to make your dream into — a rental. Starting today, Sonos and Airbnb are letting people book an overnight stay in one of Sonos’ Listening Rooms at New York City’s biggest record store, Rough Trade NYC.

Sonos’ Listening Room will come with a Sonos home sound system consisting of two of Sonos’ HiFi PLAY:5s speakers and two PLAY:1s spakers, a Sonos Connect, as well as a Pro-ject record player so you can spin the collection of records Sonos has curated specifically for the room. Sonos is also furnishing the room with a bed and a mini-fridge full of the products of local Brooklyn eateries. Sonos will also give you a look into NYC past with a collection of out-of-print New York music zines.

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Each person can only reserve the room for one night, but applying for the room is free. The contest runs until September and people will be able to rent the room from October 1 until November 30. Once morning comes, whoever is staying in the Sonos Listening Room can get first dibs on everything in Rough Trade before the store opens. Even if you are not able to get a reservation, the room will be open to lounge and listen in for the public when it is not being rented.

For those who instantly thought of a massive house party should know that you must notify Airbnb how many people will be in the room, they must have valid photo I.D. and must leave by 2 A.M. The space will only be available on select Friday and Saturday nights, but will feature a “VIP concert experience,” presumably featuring a performance in Rough Trade’s live music space. The record store has at least one performance scheduled every weekend from October 9 until the contest ends on November 19.

The partnership with Sonos and Rough Trade comes at a time when Airbnb’s future in New York City is part illegal and part unclear. Short-term rentals have been illegal in New York City since 2011, and earlier this summer the New York Assembly and Senate passed a bill that would impose steep fines on hosts who advertise renting their entire home for less than 30 days without them present. Airbnb has preemptively threatened to sue New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo if he signs the bill into law.

Anyone interested in spending the night surrounded by vinyl, however, can check out the Rough Trade listing on Airbnb here.

Keith Nelson Jr.
Staff Writer, Entertainment
Keith Nelson Jr is a music/tech journalist making big pictures by connecting dots. Born and raised in Brooklyn, NY he…
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