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What You Missed In The Music Industry Podcast: March 14 - 21, 2026

·26 min·1 clip

The RIAA said vinyl sales hit $1 billion in revenue last year for the first time in a decade.

The show frames the week of March 14 to 21, 2026 as a catch-up on music-industry news. It also points listeners to its companion podcast, What You Missed in the Music Business, for record-label and music-company coverage. The roundup starts with the Dance Music Award nominees and South by Southwest. Then it shifts to the numbers, beginning with the RIAA's report that vinyl sales reached $1 billion in revenue for the first time in a decade. Taylor Swift's The Life of a Showgirl is cited as a major driver of that vinyl bump. The IFPI's Global Music Report for 2026 comes next. It says global recorded music revenues hit $31.7 billion in 2025, which is 6.4 percent higher than the year before. That is the 11th straight year of growth. The report also says paid streaming subscription revenue rose 8.8 percent. The legal section opens with Snoop Dogg's failed bid to trademark "smoke weed every day." The patent office rules that the phrase is too common to work as a brand name. Afroman gets a win when the lawsuit from Ohio police officers is dismissed. The officers had sued after he mocked them in a music video and a song. Ken Dorshow announces retirement from the RIAA after seven years in the role. That run included the landmark litigation against AI firms Suno and Udio. Katy Perry loses a trademark battle in Australia against designer Katie Perry. A Los Angeles jury orders Kanye West to pay $140,000 to a construction manager injured during renovation work at his Malibu mansion. Pras Michel drops his lawsuit against Lauryn Hill, and Lil Nas X returns to court on felony charges tied to last year's near-nude walk through Los Angeles, with his lawyers seeking a diversion program. The show closes with Taylor Swift fans in Vancouver possibly getting refunds for obstructed-view StubHub tickets. It finishes with chart notes, including Sam Fender and Olivia Deen holding number one in the UK singles chart with Rain Me In, Harry Styles falling to number three, Bella Kaye reaching a new peak at number two, and Dean Turley topping the Beatport EDM chart with Actin' Tough Original Mix.

As heard by us

A brisk music industry roundup, anchored by sales records, legal updates, and chart movement.

The weekly music industry roundup keeps a tight grip on the items it names: Dance Music Award nominees, SXSW, and a batch of sales and legal updates.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

Your weekly music-industry scan, with awards, SXSW, sales records, and chart moves in one pass.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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