The biggest music industry news | April 2026
YouTube raises prices in the US, Amazon Music makes concert discovery easier, and Spotify turns 20.
YouTube introduces 24/7 streaming ‘Stations’
Stepping even closer towards traditional TV viewing, YouTube has introduced a new feature called “Stations”. This enables viewers to tune into 24/7 streaming channels, creating a relaxed, lean-back viewing experience. “Stations” combines the ease of a continuous TV schedule with the flexibility and personalisation of modern streaming.
Spotify adds podcasts to Prompted Playlists
Spotify has taken its Prompted Playlists beyond just music, adding podcasts to the AI-powered discovery feature. Combining text-based prompts, users’ listening history and the charts and trends, Prompted Playlists now generates tailored lists of podcast episodes and new shows. With podcasts firmly becoming a core offering for Spotify, improving discovery is a crucial focus, both for creators and listeners.
YouTube Premium increases prices in the US
YouTube has increased its Premium subscription prices in the US for the first time since 2023. The increase applies to both YouTube Premium and YouTube Music plans. Users already subscribed will see the increase implemented in June’s billing cycle, while new users will be affected immediately. YouTube is following a wider trend of price increases across music and video subscription services.
Spotify lets US & UK users buy physical books
Spotify has expanded the ability to purchase physical books through the platform to the UK and US. Thanks to a new partnership with Bookshop.org, Spotify has made it easier than ever to discover stories digitally and then own them physically. The feature promotes the discovery of stories while supporting independent bookshops through Bookshop.org’s model.
YouTube introduces zero-minute daily Shorts limit
YouTube has updated its Shorts time limits, designed to help reduce doom-scrolling in users. Now, users can set the limit as low as zero minutes, essentially making it possible to “turn off” YouTube Shorts completely. These settings are largely aimed at parents who want to limit their children’s screentime. However, limiting YouTube Shorts could impact music discovery and stunt the reach of creators and artists.
Record Store Day 2026 promotes community in music
Record Store Day 2026 saw music fans around the UK and beyond rally together to support brick-and-mortar record stores, relish physical formats, and enjoy exclusive releases. Artists like Elton John and Madonna made up the list of artists who released special editions for Record Store Day. The event celebrates the community aspect of music, in an industry which is becoming increasingly digital and based online.
Spotify tags AI music in song credits
Spotify has launched its new AI disclosure feature in beta. The influx of AI-generated music certainly isn’t limited to Spotify, but the platform is improving transparency around AI by adding disclosure credits at the song level. This system relies on artists disclosing to their label or distributor how AI has been used in their own tracks before a release is sent to Spotify. This is the platform’s first move towards AI transparency, following many other DSPs who have already implemented measures.
75,000 AI tracks uploaded to Deezer every day
Deezer has given another update on the rising tide of AI uploads to its platform. Now, around 44% of all new tracks uploaded to the streaming platform each day are AI-generated. This equates to approximately 75,000 tracks a day, or an eye-watering 2 million a month. However, Deezer said that AI-generated music only accounts for between 1-3% of total streams on the platform. These low listening levels can be attributed to Deezer’s AI detection, tagging and moderation efforts.
Amazon Music and Bandsintown team up
Amazon Music and Bandsintown have teamed up to bring concert discovery to Amazon’s music streaming service. This follows the likes of Apple Music, which recently partnered with Ticketmaster and Bandsintown. This feature will see concert listings from Bandsintown displayed on Amazon Music artist profiles, making the transition between streaming an artist to watching them live smoother than ever.
Spotify celebrates 20 years of listening
Spotify celebrated its 20th birthday! To celebrate, the platform delved deep into the data of the past two decades, revealing the most-streamed songs, artists, podcasts and audiobooks of all-time. Taylor Swift claimed the most-streamed artist of all time, and “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd holds the top spot for most-streamed song.