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Play it again: HBO renews rock ‘n’ roll drama Vinyl for season 2

It didn’t take HBO long to make up its mind about Vinyl: The premium network has renewed the rock ‘n’ roll drama for a second season just days after its series premiere. President of HBO Programming Michael Lombardo announced the news Thursday.

Vinyl premiered with a two-hour episode on Sunday, February 14. Although its ratings weren’t overly impressive — 764,000 viewers tuned in for the 9:00 pm ET broadcast, according to Deadline — the show earned strong reviews from critics. The fact that Vinyl premiered on Valentine’s Day probably didn’t help viewership, but whatever the case, HBO clearly wasn’t fazed by the numbers.

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It’s understandable that HBO would be confident in the series. Vinyl comes from an all-star team of creators, including legendary musician Mick Jagger, acclaimed filmmaker Martin Scorsese, award-winning non-fiction writer Rich Cohen, and Boardwalk Empire creator Terence Winter. On top of that, Vinyl has an impressive cast: Bobby Cannavale, Olivia Wilde, Ray Romano, Ato Essandoh, Max Casella, P.J. Byrne, J.C. MacKenzie, Birgitte Hjort Sørensen, Juno Temple, Jack Quaid, James Jagger, and Paul Ben-Victor.

Set in New York in the 1970’s, the series follows Richie Finestra (played by Cannavale), a man struggling to save his failing record label. HBO describes the series as “a ride through the sex- and drug-addled music business of the early 1970’s at the dawn of punk, disco and hip-hop.” The show, which boasts a sizable music budget, will release soundtrack sets over the course of at least the 10-episode first season.

The official Vinyl Twitter account celebrated the news in a tweet Thursday, sharing a fitting clip from the show a bottle of champagne being popped.

Vinyl airs on Sundays at 9 pm ET on HBO.

Stephanie Topacio Long
Stephanie Topacio Long is a writer and editor whose writing interests range from business to books. She also contributes to…
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