(Bloomberg) — Joni Mitchell said she’s pulling her music from Spotify Technology SA following a similar move by Neil Young, escalating a dispute that homes in on the streaming platform’s support for its most popular — and controversial — podcaster.
Citing solidarity with the global scientific community, Mitchell, 78, said she’s standing by Young, who accused podcaster Joe Rogan of spreading vaccine misinformation on his show distributed by Spotify. Young, 76, removed his music from the service in protest, prompting the hashtag #spotifydeleted to trend on social media.
“Irresponsible people are spreading lies that are costing people their lives,” Mitchell, known for hits such as “Big Yellow Taxi” and “Help Me,” wrote on her website on Friday. “I stand in solidarity with Neil Young and the global scientific and medical communities on this issue.”
Spotify has plowed a multibillion dollar investment into podcasting and advertising technology to turn its money-losing music platform into a profitable audio service. It struck a deal in 2020 with Rogan, a 54-year-old commentator with his roots in comedy, worth more than $100 million. In contrast, many musicians say their streaming royalties are far too meager.
No one was immediately available at Spotify to comment on the latest development. In a previous statement widely reported by media organizations, the company said it wanted “all the world’s music and audio content to be available to Spotify users.”
Spotify’s rivals were quick to capitalize on Young’s decision. Young pushed fans toward an Amazon Music promotion, which is offering new users free access for four months. Apple Music has also tried to capture new listeners, calling itself the “home of Neil Young” in a pinned Tweet.
Under Fire
Rogan, who pulls in millions of listeners and downloads every month, came under fire this month from a coalition of 270 scientists and medical professionals. They issued an open letter calling on Spotify to take action against “mass-misinformation events” that “damage public trust in scientific research and sow doubt in the credibility of data-driven guidance.” Mitchell included a link to the letter on her website.
The coalition singled out an episode of Rogan’s podcast from Dec. 31 which featured Robert Malone, a doctor who has called himself the “inventor” of mRNA vaccines, the type that serves as the basis for the Covid-19 vaccine. Malone was banned from Twitter for circulating anti-vaccine misinformation.
Spotify Urged to Adopt Misinformation Policy for Joe Rogan Show
Since the start of the pandemic, Spotify has removed 20,000 podcast episodes that contained Covid misinformation. It’s deleted more than 40 episodes of Rogan’s podcast. It prohibits infringing and illegal content, as well as hate speech, on its platforms.
Staying Put
Young urged other artists and record companies to remove music from Spotify in a statement on his website Wednesday. Still, the platform has yet to see a wave of musicians joining in solidarity. Singer Barry Manilow, responding to speculation on social media, said he’s keeping his songs on the streaming service.
Manilow, known for hits such as “Copacabana (At the Copa)” and “Mandy,” has more than 2.8 million monthly listeners on Spotify. Young has more than 6 million, while Mitchell has 3.7 million.
British singer James Blunt, addressing the fact that he’s an artist loved and hated in equal measure, entered the fray Saturday with a quip. In a tweet with the hashtag #youwerebeautiful, he threatened to release new music if Spotify failed to cut its ties with Rogan.
(Updates with context throughout)
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