Neil Young exhorted Spotify staff on Monday to become part of the “great resignation,” urging them to quit the morally compromised streaming service “before it eats up your soul.”
He also said that CEO Daniel Ek was more of a problem than Joe Rogan, whose podcasts have sparked a host of artists, including Young and Joni Mitchell, to yank their music from the streaming service.
Young also urged baby boomers, whose hands are on 70% of their assets as compared to the 5% typically in the hands of millennials, to move their money from big banks.
“You and I need to lead,” the 76-year-old singer wrote in a new letter posted to the Neil Young Archives. “In our age of Climate Chaos, I say ditch the companies contributing to the mass fossil fuel destruction of Earth.”
He named Chase, Citibank, Bank of America and Wells Fargo as the biggest offenders.
“Join me as I move my money away from the damage causers or you will unintentionally be one of them,” he wrote. “You have the power to change the world. We can do it together. Your grandchildren will thank you in history.”
He also told fellow musicians and creators that there was a “better place than Spotify” to serve as their art’s home. And then his final punch.
“To the workers at Spotify, I say Daniel Ek is your problem — not Joe Rogan,” Young wrote. “Ek pulls the strings. Get out of the place before it eats up your soul. The goals stated by EK are about numbers — not art, not creativity.”
Rogan has disseminated masses of misinformation about the novel coronavirus, the vaccines against it and other aspects of the pandemic. After Young and Mitchell pulled their music in protest, Grammy-winning singer-songwriter India Arie pulled hers after posting a montage of clips in which Rogan liberally uttered a racist slur.
After her revelation, 70 Rogan podcast episodes disappeared from Spotify, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson withdrew previously stated support, citing his new familiarity with the “complete narrative.”
Rogan apologized for his “shameful” use of the epithet after the viral video.
Ek has said he will not “silence” Rogan but endorses drawing “clear lines around content” and taking action “when they are crossed.”
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