Spotify Boycott: India Arie Seizes Music from the Platform
Four-time Grammy winner, singer, songwriter, and actress India Arie pulls her music from Spotify, citing frustrations around racial commentary from Joe Rogan as well as minimal earnings for musicians on the platform.
India Arie has courageously followed the lead of Neil Young, as both artists pledged to pull their music from Spotify earlier this week. Arie attributed her decision to Spotify endorsing and generously compensating Joe Rogan, despite his multiple uses of the N-word.
You can’t say #BlackLivesMatter on Monday and on Tuesday support racist actions, language and shows on Tuesday. @Spotify You continue to put profits over people…..
— Mustafa Santiago Ali 🇧🇷 🇪🇹 🇵🇷 (@EJinAction) February 7, 2022
Thank you @indiaarie and all the others who have stood up for justice, humanity and common sense. pic.twitter.com/EhxJPpmNli
Arie took to her Instagram page, stating, “I believe in freedom of speech. However, I find Joe Rogan problematic for reasons OTHER than his Covid interviews… FOR ME ITS ALSO HIS LANGUAGE AROUND RACE.” Rogan has been scrutinized for downplaying the COVID-19 pandemic and spreading misinformation about the virus, going so far as to advise others not to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
India Arie’s frustrations are also rooted in Rogan’s hefty compensation from Spotify while other artists and creators receive insufficient paychecks from the company. The singer says hard-working artists are paid 1/28th of a penny per stream from Spotify while Joe Rogan generates millions in revenue. These frustrations highlight a deeper issue where podcasters are compensated heavily while consistently spreading misinformation.
#DeleteSpotify Clarity: Artist give their LIVES making music that streams for a 28th of a penny. Yes 28th of a penny. And Joe Rogan is paid millions? THIS IS AN ABUSE. thank you @neilyoung for your activist spirit.
— India.Arie (@indiaarie) January 29, 2022
Other musicians who plan to remove their music from the platform include Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, and Graham Nash. Sophia Bush also recently announced on Instagram that her podcast, Work in Progress, will soon be unavailable on Spotify, stating, “Ethics matter…. I hope we can create a wave big enough to be felt, together…. If not? At least we walked the walk.” Bush wasn’t hesitant to condemn the harmful narratives produced by Rogan’s speech.
While Spotify has openly condemned the use of racial slurs, the company has firmly decided against banning Rogan’s content. The company removed nearly seventy episodes of his podcast, but claims canceling that voices is a “slippery slope.” Spotify did, however, pledge to invest $100 million into historically marginalized voices.
