Neil Young Praises Label & Publisher for ‘Standing With’ Him in Spotify COVID Misinformation Fight
Neil Young has posted two letters praising his publisher, Hipgnosis, and label, Warner Records/Reprise, on Wednesday (Jan. 25) after Spotify acquiesced to the singer-songwriter’s demand to have his music pulled from the streaming service. Young publicly requested the removal of his catalog on Monday, citing the spread of vaccine misinformation on Spotify’s mega-popular Joe Rogan Experience podcast as the reason.
“I want to thank my partners for standing with me,” Young wrote in one of the statements, which were posted to his Neil Young Archives website after Spotify announced the iconic’s rocker was being removed. This was not an easy business decision, Young noted, explaining that Spotify represents 60% of his streaming revenue, meaning Warner Records/Reprise and Hipgnosis — which purchased 50% of Young’s song catalog in January 2021 — would take a significant financial hit with the decision. Young called this “losing 60% of my world wide streaming income in the name of Truth.”
“Losing 60% of worldwide streaming income by leaving SPOTIFY is a very big deal, a costly move, but worth it for our integrity and beliefs,” Young said in the second letter, adding that “misinformation about COVID cannot be accepted.”
The singer-songwriter went on to express the hope that other artists will “make a move,” but noted, “I can’t really expect that to happen.”
“I did this because I had no choice in my heart,” Young continued. “It is who I am. I am not censoring anyone. I am speaking my own truth. I know Daniel Ek who owns SPOTIFY…. I like Daniel. I wish he had not taken the steps he has taken because it stopped my music from being shared on his SPOTIFY platform. It stopped us from working together to spread the music. But we are still friends.”
In a statement to Billboard, a Spotify spokesperson confirmed the removal of Young’s catalog, writing, “We want all the world’s music and audio content to be available to Spotify users. With that comes great responsibility in balancing both safety for listeners and freedom for creators. We have detailed content policies in place and we’ve removed over 20,000 podcast episodes related to COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic. We regret Neil’s decision to remove his music from Spotify, but hope to welcome him back soon.”
Young’s concerns over Rogan’s podcast echo those of some in the medical and scientific communities. In an open letter posted online earlier this month, a group of 270 doctors, scientists, professors and other medical professionals expressed unease over Rogan’s platforming of misinformation around COVID-19 and asked Spotify to implement a misinformation policy as a means of combatting those claims. Among other comments, Rogan has discouraged young people from receiving the vaccine, incorrectly claimed that mRNA vaccines are “gene therapy” and promoted the use of ivermectin to treat COVID-19, contrary to FDA warnings against using the drug to treat the virus.
