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Joni Mitchell Removes Music From Spotify, Joins Neil Young In Protest Over Joe Rogan's Anti-Vax Podcast
In an act of solidarity, Joni Mitchell has joined Neil Young in removing her music from Spotify.
In an act of solidarity, Joni Mitchell has joined Neil Young in removing her music from Spotify. She shared an official message on her website. According to reports, the veteran artist's move comes after Young's protest against Spotify for hosting a popular anti-vax podcast by the comedian Joe Rogan.
"I've decided to remove all my music from Spotify. Irresponsible people are spreading lies that are costing people their lives. I stand in solidarity with Neil Young and the global scientific and medical communities on this issue," Mitchell wrote in the brief note on her website.
Meanwhile, many fans of Neil Young have spoken in his support and shared tweets with hashtags 'I stand with Neil Young' and 'CancelSpotify'. Spotify began removing Young's music after he issued an ultimatum to the company. Young said, "They can have Rogan or Young. Not both." Last week, Young wrote on his website that he "felt better" for leaving Spotify.
"Private companies have the right to choose what they profit from, just as I can choose not to have my music support a platform that disseminates harmful information," he said. "I am happy and proud to stand in solidarity with the front line health care workers who risk their lives every day to help others," he added.
NHS doctor and best-selling author Rachel Clarke opened up in support of both the singers and said, "Both Neil Young & Joni Mitchell ... know painfully well how much harm, suffering & avoidable death anti-vaxxers can cause."
According to reports, hundreds of scientists and medical experts have signed an open letter to Spotify, saying that Rogan has "repeatedly spread misleading and false claims on his podcast, provoking distrust in science and medicine" and had "spread a number of unsubstantiated conspiracy theories".
Spotify said it regretted Young's decision but hoped "to welcome him back soon". The streaming platform reportedly paid $100m in 2020 for the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, which is one of the most popular podcasts in the world with an estimated audience of 11 million.
Mitchell has 3.7million monthly listeners to her music on Spotify and her songs 'Big Yellow Taxi' and 'A Case of You' have both been streamed more than 100 million times on the platform. Meanwhile, Young has 6.2 million monthly listeners, with recent releases like 'Heart of Gold' and 'Harvest Moon'.
